


Sonic's Small Discovery

by TheEccentricNormad



Category: Sonic Boom (Cartoon), Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: ABDL, Age Regression/De-Aging, Baby Sonic - Freeform, Daddy Shadow, Diaper Usage, Family Feels, Fluff and Humor, Mobians (Sonic the Hedgehog), Non-Sexual Age Play, Slight Cursing, Switching Roles, Teen in Diapers, The Ancients - Freeform, There needs to be more ABDL stores with Sonic characters, Uncle Knuckles, Wetting, big bro to little bro, messing, mommy amy, nothing graphic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-05
Updated: 2020-12-30
Packaged: 2021-03-06 16:14:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 35
Words: 70,868
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26301754
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheEccentricNormad/pseuds/TheEccentricNormad
Summary: (Sonic Boom Tv Series) While Sonic and his team are exploring an underground tunnel, Sonic ends up trapped in a strange chamber and is turned into a baby hedgehog. Team Sonic now has their hands full caring for and trying to reverse the transformation, but there are a few glitches in the process making Sonic rethink his life so far. WARNING: ABDL THEMES AND TEEN DIAPER USAGE.
Comments: 105
Kudos: 118





	1. Strange Doors

Team Sonic slowly walked down the dark tunnel, their gear and flashlights lighting up the path they were currently following. Tails taking the lead, was concentrating on his Miles Electric, trying to determine where they were in the dark maze. Sonic walked beside him with a bored expression, mumbling about how slow they were going. Behind them, Amy was excitedly chattering away about the history of the tunnel system they were exploring, theorizing where it could lead to and what archeological discoveries they might find. Knuckles wandered behind her, oohing and aahing with wide eyes at Amy's theories, and lastly, guarding the rear was Shadow. The newest addition to Team Sonic, he kept his eyes and ears alert to anything suspicious that may try to attack them from behind.

"Oh, oh, oh! What if this is a secret transport tunnel that is spread all over the island? Think about it! It could lead to areas outside the island! Whole new underground sites holding perfectly preserved pieces of history just waiting to be discovered!"

"Like treasure? Oh! I could finally get a rug to go with my lamp!" Knuckles exclaimed, "Wait, where there's treasure, there's also pirates. I don't have a sword with me!" Amy rolled her eyes, "Ugh! Knuckles, there are no pirates."

"Yeah, pirates are never found in hundreds of years old underground tunnels. So there's no need to worry about that. Besides, pirates are found in ships on the ocean, usually around areas with small islands to bury their treasure...after they've massacred the locals, of course." Tails interjected while keeping his eyes on the handheld. "Treasure? Hmmm, I hadn't thought about that. Think of all the chili dogs I could buy!" Sonic mussed.

"Wait! Pirates are on islands?" Knuckles flailed his arms wildly, "We live on an island! As soon as we find this treasure, we gotta get rid of it." Amy sighed. _Here we go again._ She thought. The pink hedgehog tried to redirect her friend's focus on why they were here in the first place. "Guys, there is no treasure! The only treasure we're going to find is history. No gems, no rings, no pirates."

"The pink one is right. This tunnel could be just a complicated sewer system for all we know." Shadow mumbled. Everyone besides Shadow stopped and shuttered, saying a collective "Eeeewwww!"

"Honestly, do we have to have these kinds of conversations every time I bring you all to a newly discovered archeological site?!" Amy whined, to which everyone gave her a look saying, 'do you need to ask?' "Ugh, fine. Just lead the way, please, Tails."

"Yeah, the faster we find wherever this leads to, the faster I can get back to beating Faker in another race." Sonic boasted.

"Oh, please, Faker. The last two races I've beaten you at, you acted like a pathetic child."

"Hey, I only lost those two times cause you cheated!"

"Oh, how?"

"The first time you tripped me," Sonic counted on his gloves, "and the second time, when I was just a few seconds from reaching the finish line, you freaked and teleported to the end."

"That's ridiculous. You know I never cheat. It just sounds like your making excuses for your poor attempts to beat me. No one can beat the Ultimate Lifeform."

"Being the 'ultimate' in everything must mean you're the ultimate loser," Sonic smirked. He loved teasing his rival, "It also means being the ultimate winner, and being a winner is everything." Shadow countered, "Yeah, well..." Sonic grumbled; not being able to come up with a good response, he quickly walked further ahead.

"Wait, Sonic, don't go too far. We don't know where any of these tunnels leads to-"

"Tails, it's fine. I'm just gonna scout ahead and stretch my legs. No need to worry, little bro, I'll be back in a Sonic second." Waving off, the blue blur dashed ahead, turning around the corner leaving a blue streak behind. Tails sighed, "Great."

"Well, what did you expect? The guy can't stand hanging around someplace for more than 30 minutes unless he's asleep." Amy rolled her eyes again. "Eh, give the faker some credit. He's getting better. This time he lasted 40 minutes before running off." Shadow chuckled.

* * *

Sonic speed through the dark tunnel, quills whipping behind him. "Man, it feels good to run! I don't know how everyone can stand there doing nothing for more than a few seconds. Wait, what was that?!" Sonic dug his heels to the ground, making an abrupt stop. He backed up a few steps to see a door on the left side...right in the middle of nowhere?

Up till this point, Sonic and his team hadn't seen anything along the tunnel walls, no doors, no vents, no windows, nothing. And now here was a seemingly out of place metal door caked in dust and dirt. He looked down the long tunnel; there was nothing else besides this mysterious door. "Huh, Cool! Maybe this leads to the end of the road. Now, how to open it?" Dusting it off as much as possible, Sonic found the handle; with a grunt, he pulled the rusted door open to reveal not an exit but a large room. "Well, so much for that." He grumbled.

It turns out Amy was correct about one thing, the door not being open in centuries left everything inside perfectly preserved, as if the room was used only yesterday. Papers covered in the language of the ancients were scattered all along the tile floor. The left and right sides of the walls had slightly dusty computer screens and control panels. Wires poked out underneath, leading up and connecting to a giant glass tube at the end of the room, the door wide open. "Huh, weird." The blue blur shrugged; he picked up some of the papers from the floor. "Wonder if Amy or Tails can translate what's written here? I sure can't make it out; just looks like a bunch of squiggles to me."

Laying the papers on a panel, he looked around the room, trying to recall everything Amy had explained to him about the ancients and thought of what purpose this room possibly could have served. _Maybe it really was an old transport tunnel, and this place was the security room? But then what's with the giant glass tube?_ Sonic stepped up to the tube, looking inside, "Yeah, I definitely can't make any of this out." he scratched the back of his head, "Maybe...?" The last step clicked as he walked into the chamber. The glass door quickly closed and locked behind him. The darkened computer screens came to life, and buttons on the control panels lit up like Christmas lights.

"What the?!" Sonic turned back, hitting the door with his nose, "Ouch!" he nasally whined, "The heck!" Placing his hands out, he found there was a door now blocking his way out. "Hmmm." He hummed, curling his hands. He repeatedly punched the glass door; it didn't budge. He huffed, eyebrows raised. "Ok, you asked for this." Curling up into a ball, he reeved up, spinning around the tube using his deadly quills to cut himself out. He stopped a few seconds later to admire his work only to gasp in shock that it didn't work either, he looked around the tube, and there wasn't a single scratch. "Oh no." he whispered, "Gotta get help."

"GUYS! HEY, OVER HERE! HELP!" He yelled, hoping they were nearby. Ears perked, listening for a reply; he jumped as something above him creaked and groaned, the machine coming fully to life. He slowly looked up as the machine whirred, bright lights above flashing on blinding him, "Aagh!" he moaned, rubbing his eyes. _This is not good. This is so not good._ He was regretting ever opening that weird door into this weird room; panic rising, he screamed again for help.

* * *

Tail's sensitive ears twitched; he looked up from the handheld, "Did you guys hear that?"

"Hear what? I don't hear anything?" Knuckles said, digging his pinky into a hidden ear hole behind his locks.

"Quiet!" Shadow growled. The group stayed silent for a few moments before hearing a soft echo, "There! It's coming from up ahead where Sonic went." Tails pointed.

"Bet Faker got himself into some more trouble, come on!" Shadow commanded, skating ahead on his rocket shoes following the increasing volume of Sonic's screams. The group quickly arrived at the room gasping at the scene; lights all around were flashing like mad, papers flew wildly in the air as the machine's fans had just kicked up, Sonic was screaming and pounding on the glass doors with a panicked expression, desperately trying to get out.

"WHAT THE HELL! Don't just stand there. Come on!" Tails yelled, snapping the group into action. Tails and Amy ran to the control panels trying to stop the system, while Shadow and Knuckles rushed to the chamber to get their blue brother out.

"Stand back!" Shadow warned. Sonic did so, ears pulled back, shielding himself from the soon to be broken glass as Shadow and Knuckles pounded on the tube with all their might, but it still wouldn't break. The whirring noise above him grew louder, "This isn't working." Shadow stopped backing up. "Tell me you've got something over there, fox!" he yelled over the machine.

"We're trying, but we can't find anything!"

"Well, find it faster cause something's about to happen!"

"Can't you use a Chaos blast or something?!" Amy screamed.

"If I do that, the whole place will blow!" he growled.

Suddenly the machine made a high-pitched hiss. Dark fuchsia steam poured into the glass chamber, holding Sonic hostage; his eyes widened in fear. "GUYS!" He was hyperventilating; this couldn't be happening. He was going to die in an underground tunnel by some weird deadly pink gas. Sonic knew he was going to die one day. He just always thought it would be in a blaze of glory or by one of Eggman's robots. "GUYS!... Guys!...guys...g-gys..." he slurred, slouching suddenly, feeling tired, so tired and weak.

Everything was blurring. His eyelids drooped as he saw the rest of his team scurrying over and violently pounding on the tube, screaming his name. The sides of this vision darkened as he leaned back against the tube, his friend's screams were growing muffled, his legs began to feel like jello giving way beneath him. A feeling of peace washed over as the pink gas wrapped around him like a warm blanket. Everything grew more muffled and fuzzy; he felt calm, relaxed. He softly smiles as he passed out, collapsing into the fuchsia gas.

"SOOOOONIIIC!" Tails wailed.


	2. He's a...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter this time.

"No." Tails whispered, staring into the swirling pink mist on the other side of the glass where his big brother lay, tears streaming down his muzzle. "Oh, Sonic!" Amy cried, covering her face, shoulders shaking. Knuckles pulled her into a hug, trying to comfort her. Shadow's head bowed in silent morning. The loud droning from the machine died down to a low hum; the lights from the control panel darkened, and the fans turned off, leaving the room in an empty silence.

Shadow glared at the tube still filled with the poisonous gas; he almost couldn't believe it. That annoying blue hedgehog was gone. He let out a shaky breath closing his eyes. Sure they hadn't been the best of friends; that was stretching it. But they certainly were not acquaintances either, more like close rivals. Always trying to one-up the other, help make each other stronger.

Opening his eyes, he noticed something flashing in the reflection. Turning around, the light was coming from a single red button blinking on the control panel. Glancing back to the swirling pink mist where his fallen rival lay, he walked to the panel staring at the flashing button, seeming to call him as if it had a hidden secret. He looked up to the computer screen above where it had a message and an image of an open door; he looked at the button again, hesitantly raising his hand. What would happen if he pressed it? Nothing worse than what had already had happened, right? The image above seemed to indicate as much, and even if it was too late for the Faker, his team could at least get out of this death trap...give his rival a proper goodbye.

He pressed the button, a click resounded. Tails, Knuckles, and Amy gasped, blinking away tears as the glass door released with a hiss, gas dissipated into the still air revealing the only thing left of Sonic, his clothing. Tails reached in, grasping some of the sports tape, "He's gone...he's really...gone." he choked, holding the tape of his big brother close to his chest, crying.

"Aaahhh." Came a high pitched moan, something very tiny wiggled underneath Sonic's bandana, "What?" Amy sniffed, "What is that?" she pointed to the piece of brown cloth. Shadow returned to the tube, bent down, and carefully reached inside for the squirming bandana; it squeaked as he gently picked it up. Cupping around the object in his hands, he pulled the bandana away to reveal a tiny blue ball of fur with sparkling emerald green eyes. His jaw dropped, eyes as big as saucers Shadow stuttered his voice barely above a whisper, "S-S-S-Sonic?!"

"Sonic?" Everyone else repeated and crowded around the blue fuzzball. "Guys?" Sonic wearily asked, rubbing his eyes, "Uhhhh, what happened?" He blinked as everything came to focus. "Guys...why are you all looking at me like that? W-Why are you all so big? What happened?!"

"Sonic's a...he's turned into a...a..." Tails stuttered.

"What? I'm at what?!"

"He's a baby hedgehog," Shadow muttered. With wide eyes, Sonic looked down to see his now tiny body in Shadow's hands. His legs, tail, arms, everything was baby-sized. Eye twitching, he dumbfoundedly looked back at his now giant team, all staring back at him in awe. Sonic took a big breath and screamed.


	3. Chapter 3 Testing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italicized words are a character's thoughts.

After recovering somewhat from their shock, Team Sonic silently left the tunnels making their way back to Hedgehog village.

As they drew closer, Amy nervously broke the silence, "Soooo...um, what are we gonna do now?" she asked, glancing at their now tiny blue leader. Who was currently pouting, wrapped up in his banana cradled in Shadow's arms. "Well," Tails sighed, "I guess I better start examining Sonic as soon as we get back to my place so I can figure out how to cure him of his...condition." he worded delicately. "How long do you think it will take for you to fix him?" Shadow asked. "Honestly...I'm not sure." Tails looked down at his now 'little brother' who was still pouting, ear twitching, "It all depends on how babyfied he is."

"Babyfied? Ok, I know I'm not smart, but it sounds like you're just making up words." Knuckles said. "I guess you could say I am. I've never heard of anything like this happening before! This is like...like..." Tails flung his hands up, searching for the right words.

"Whole new undiscovered territory?" Amy suggested. "Yes! Well, I guess not totally undiscovered. There must be some kind of documentation or formula left somewhere in those tunnels for this kind of age-reversal process to happen in the first place?"

"Are you saying we'll have to go back to that Chaos forsaken room?" Shadow grumbled Sonic moaned at the thought of going back there. "Unfortunately, yes, but not today! I need some time to figure out the extent of Sonic's condition...and I think we could all use a breather."

"Well, what are we gonna do about Sonic in the meantime? He can't exactly go back to living by himself in his shack." Amy pointed out. "What? Not go back to my shack! Why not?" Sonic tried to ask, but all that came out was high pitched baby babble. "Pinky is right. That piece of maggot eaten plywood is barely habitable for anyone anyway, let alone an infant. Knuckles doesn't have a home, and I don't think my cave will do well either," said Shadow. "I would say he could stay with me, but I can't take care of him and come up with a cure at the same time, not quickly anyway."

"It wouldn't be safe at your place, either, Tails," Amy added. "With all of that dangerous equipment around, Sonic could hurt himself...I think him staying with me would be for the best, but I don't have any baby supplies." Amy tapped her chin, eyes lighting up, "I guess I have some shopping to do!" Everyone but Amy groaned. Now that they had a plan, the group went their separate ways.

* * *

*At Tails' workshop.*

Shadow and Knuckles watched Tails as he examined Sonic sitting on his workshop table, "Hmmm..." Tails hummed, "8 inches! Gosh, Sonic, you're tiny even for a baby." Sonic looked away, pouting and blushed; he couldn't help being small. "Well, this is interesting..." Tails mused, tapping a claw on one of Sonic's quills, "Your quills aren't near as sharp as they were before. They feel more like rubber, and it seems your fur to quill ratio has switched dramatically to keep you warm." The hedgie covered his face, cheeks burning; he just wanted to crawl into a hole and die right then and there. "Yes...interesting." Knuckles mimicked, scratching his chin with a thoughtful expression. Shadow rolled his eyes and 'hmphed.'

"Interesting, very interesting..." Tails muttered again, writing down his findings, "And what, pray tell, is so 'interesting' that it needs repeating?" Shadow grumbled. "So far...physically, Sonic is a perfectly healthy baby. A little small but I can't find anything that even denotes his drastic change in age. Physically anyway. I have no idea what kind of effect it might have had on him mentally, but we can do those tests tomorrow. Right now, I need to get some...samples and have them analyzed as quickly as possible. I'll get a more in-depth answer of what effect the gas had on his system and begin to make an antidote." Knuckles looked confused, "Uh, Tails, I don't think we can get a free sample of that gas back at those tunnels."

"No, Knuckles," Tails sighed and answered nervously, "I need to collect the samples...from Sonic." Sonic's eyes widened slightly, looking up at Tails. Having been on the receiving end of many of Tail's experiments and inventions, he knew a sample could be anything: from a single strand of fur to having a piece of skin cut out, granted it was only one time, and it was a small piece, and it didn't hurt (Tails made sure of that), but it still was a little unnerving. He shuttered at the memory.

Tails turned to some cabinets and drawers, pulling out a small plastic cup, bowl, and something else he hid in his two tails, "Ok, Sonic, what I'm about to ask you to do is...super gross, but necessary."

"What's that?" Sonic asked, head tilted. Tails paused, shaking his head and yelling, "Oh, my Chaos!" he hit himself on the head and chuckled, "I'm an idiot! I completely forgot!"

"What?" Knuckles asked. "I forgot Sonic knows sign language! At least I know you can understand us now; that makes things a lot easier." Tails smiles in relief. "Wait a minute, Faker's not deaf, and he certainly isn't mute. How does he know sign language?"

"Well, despite the way he acts now. When we first met, Sonic didn't talk at all. When he was younger, the first time, he wasn't around people enough to learn how to talk. The only way we communicated was by sign language, so while he taught me how to sign, I taught him how to talk. Eventually, he learned enough he didn't need to sign anymore. It's been so long I forgot he could do that!"

Sonic angrily blushed again, crossing his arms. He was happy to have solved his communication problem, yet he was also upset at Tails for revealing a bit of his past. It was embarrassing to have others find out he didn't know how to talk until after he had met Tails just a few years ago. _Wait a minute, didn't Tails just mention me having to do something gross and embarrassing?_ Putting aside his irritation, Sonic waved his little hand to get Tails' attention again, "What do you need me to do?" He signed. "Uhhhh, heh, heh...I-I-I need you to um..." Tails gestured to the plastic cup and bowl, "I need your urine and fecal matter." he said with a low voice. Sonic's eyes shot up, "NO, NO, NO, NO, no, no, no!" he waved his arms, "Not doing that!"

"Sonic, I know this is really gross and embarrassing, but I need it if I'm going to make a cure for you."

"NO!"

"Do you not need to go?" Knuckles asked. Sonic crossed his arms, looking away. "Oh, just suck it up, Faker. One moment of embarrassment will not kill you." Shadow said. "Yes, it will kill me!" Sonic proceeded to exaggerate, making a slicing motion around his neck, rolled his eyes back, and collapsed backward, clutching his chest. A low growl rumbled from Shadow's throat; he had had enough of Sonic's foolish behavior today. If he wasn't going to take this seriously, Shadow was going to make him. The ebony hog marched up to the table, picking up the 'dead' fuzzball by the scruff, making him go limp and forcing him to stare right into his ruby eyes. "Enough, Sonic! Do you really want to stay stuck like this for the rest of your life? Look at yourself; you can't; run, walk or talk. You probably couldn't even stand, let alone even attempt to take on Eggman. You. Are. Helpless. So unless you give the fox what he needs, you're stuck like this forever."

Sonic gawked back, that was the first time Shadow had ever called him by his name, and what was more, he realized Shadow was right. In this tiny, weak, baby body, he couldn't do anything he did before; he couldn't defend himself, let alone others. The reality of this situation of possibly being stuck like this forever struck him hard, like being blindsided by one of Eggman's robots. Tears welled up in his eyes; he hiccuped and cried like a baby.

Shadow panicked; he hadn't expected this kind of reaction from the tiny blue blur. "Aw great, Shadow, look what you did!" Knuckles angrily reprimanded the ebony hog, maternal instincts kicking in as he swiftly grabbed the sobbing blue hedgie from him. "What?! I only told him the facts! This could all be fixed faster if he cooperated." Shadow grumbled; he wasn't about to admit he may have been a bit too harsh. "Yeah, well, look what it did to him! Poor little guy." Knuckles cooed, petting the little hedgie's quills. He couldn't stand watching someone cry, especially when he viewed that somebody as a little brother.

It felt strange to Sonic for the large echidna to pet his quills, but the comforting gesture was oddly enough starting to calm him down. _He's right_ ; Sonic sniffed, thinking, _I gotta pull myself together and get this over with if I wanna be a teenager again._ Wiping his eyes, Sonic waved to get everyone's attention, "Shadow's right, Knux. I gotta face the facts and do whatever needs to be done to get back to normal. Just...tell me what to do."

"I need you to give me some samples." Tails gestured again to the plastic cup and bowl; Sonic sighed, "Ok, I-I-I'll do it...um, I'm gonna need one of you to hold me while I...do my business." he blushed profusely, saying that out loud, he stared at the floor. Tails, Shadow, and Knuckles sweatdropped, eyes darting to each other. "Not it!" Tails and Knuckles yelled, Shadow's shoulders dropped, "Ugh, fine." he muttered in defeat, "Just hand him over and go stand in the corner or something so he can have at least a little privacy." Knuckles returned Sonic to Shadow and followed Tails to the furthest end of the workshop.

Grimacing, Shadow held the little hedgie over the cup, so he didn't have to aim. Shadow nodded that he was ready. Blushing, Sonic closed his eyes and concentrated, trying not to think about everyone else in the room. He gave a little push, and a moment later, his ear twitched, hearing a hiss as his urine landed on target. He sighed in relief as he finished filling the cup halfway; looking down, he didn't realize he had to go so badly. "Ah." Sonic squeaked to Shadow. "You done?" He asked, opening one eye. "Ah!" Sonic confirmed. Shadow moved the hedgie over to the bowl nodding again and closed his eyes. Sonic did the same and pushed again, his cheeks puffed out in effort grunting, he pushed and waited, but he couldn't go. "Uh?" Sonic sighed, confused, he needed to give his...sample, and he knew he could, but nothing was happening. "Ah, Ah!" He patted Shadow's arms. Shadow blinked, opening his eyes, "You're done already?" Sonic shook his head, "What's the problem? To embarrassed still?" he smirked.

Sonic's blush grew, "No...well, maybe a little, I just can't go. I don't know what's wrong?" Shadow looked over the tiny blur, a thoughtful look in his eyes. He laid Sonic back on his bandana and gently pressed his fingers on Sonic's tan tummy. The blue blur grimaced at the pressure and whined. "Hmmm...you feel like you might be a little constipated. I think I know how to fix that, don't move, ok." Sonic nodded in understanding, wondering how the ebony hog was going to fix his problem. Shadow moved two of his fingers down the side of Sonic's lower abdomen and gently rubbed his fingers around in circles, slowly adding pressure. _Oh! Ah! If things were weird before, this has to top it off as one of the weirdest things ever!_ Sonic thought as he winced, grunting and whining, feeling his insides reacting and rumbling to Shadow's massage.

After two minutes, Shadow stopped and held Sonic over the bowl again, "Ok, try again now." he gently spoke. Sonic closed his eyes and pushed again; this time, it took less than 10 seconds for everything to come out. "Good job!" Shadow praised Sonic when he finished. The little hedgie crossed his arms, looking away. He didn't realize Shadow had still been watching him, and shyly he signed 'thanks.'

"Tails, he's done!" Shadow called. "Excellent! Just one more thing..." Tails waved for Shadow and Knuckles to come over and whispered in their ears. Sonic leaned back on the workshop table, sighing in relief, _At least that's over, just one more thing to do, and I'll be done._ He cocked a brow over the whispering group. What's _going on?_ He didn't have to wonder long as the group parted, hands behind their backs walking back to him, Tails and Knuckles with smiles on their faces while Shadow had his usual frown.

Something was up. He didn't know what but was pretty sure he wasn't going to like it. They all stopped and stared at him for a few moments; Sonic's quills rose as he tensed up watching them.

5...4...3...2...1...

"Now!" Tails yelled. Knuckles and Shadow each grabbed an arm and a leg, pinning him down to the table. Sonic shrieked in surprise, helplessly tugging his appendages to be released as he watched Tails pull out a needle hidden away in his two tails. Sonic strangled and screamed. He HATED needles almost as much as he hated water; he'd prefer to do a hundred embarrassing things than getting stuck with a needle. Not able to pull himself out of his friend's grip, Sonic gave his best puppy dog eyes, ears pulled back, lip trembling, tears almost breaking, begging Tails not to do this to him!

It hurt Tails to do something he knew he hated to his brother, "I'm sorry, Sonic, but I need to do this." he apologizes before poking the needle into his soft flesh. Sonic cried in fear. Shadow and Tails pulled their ears down to lessen the volume of his cries. Poor Knuckles had to take it in at full force. A few moments later, Tails got what he needed and finally pulled the needle out, now filled with blood. "I'm done, I'm done, it's over!" he said, quickly gathering the rest of the samples to begin analysis.

Shadow and Knuckles released Sonic, yanking his arms and legs back, curling into a ball, sobbing for the 2nd time that hour like a baby. Shadow picked up the pint-sized blue ball in his bandana, attempting to calm him down, cradling and bouncing him up and down in his arms. He sympathized with the blue blur. He didn't like needles either. "Perhaps that is enough for today. We should head towards the pink hedgehog's home; maybe she's finished with her errands," said Shadow. Knuckles agreed. Carrying a shaking and crying ball of fur, the two left the yellow fox to his work.


	4. Chapter 4 Babied

Sonic stopped crying after a few minutes but continued to whimper as he held on to the tufts of Shadow's white chest fluff, hiding his tear-stained face from the outside world.

This day seemed to go from bad to worse if being turned into an infant wasn't bad enough; he had been stuck and prodded to the point of tears. Everything felt like it was too much; he couldn't control his emotions. Why couldn't they just leave him be? Why did he have to run off and get stuck in that stupid room in the first place? Ugh, this was exhausting. Shadow's warm fur and steady heartbeat wasn't helping him keep awake. _Maybe if I just rest my eyes._ He thought but succumbed to sleep as they walked into Amy Rose's home.

"Oh, there you guys are!"

"Ssssshhh!" Knuckles and Shadow shushed, pointing to the knocked out hedgehog, "Aww, he's so cute!" Amy whispered loudly, "How did the testing go?" Knuckles and Shadow exchanged a look, "It went well." they said in unison. "That's good. I got all the baby stuff we need, but I need some help setting up his room."

"I'll help, Knuckles. You watch Sonic until we're finished."

"Wait! What am I supposed to do?!" Knuckles whisper asked in alarm. "He's asleep, just keep him warm and go watch tv or something; if he wakes up and needs something, come get one of us," Amy reassured the echidna as Shadow placed the bundle into his thick arms. "He's so teeny-tiny, though. What if I crush him?"

"You won't crush him, Knuckles. You may be strong, but you also have a delicate touch. We trust you. You can do this, big guy!" Amy winked, softly punching his arm before heading into the guest bedroom. Shadow' hmphed' in agreement leaving the nervous echidna alone with his charge.

"They're right. I can do this. I can do this...I have a delicate touch!" Knuckles gazed at the sleeping form in his arms. "Don't worry, little buddy. I'll make sure you're nice and comfortable." True to his friend's words, with a thoughtful smile, Knuckles gently cradled Sonic close to his chest and made himself comfortable as well sitting on the couch, turning the tv on to the Comedy Chimp channel.

* * *

Sonic awoke a few hours later, rubbing his eyes. _Ugh, did I fall asleep? Where am I?_ He wondered, looking around. _This looks like Amy's place,_ "Eep!" he squeaked suddenly, feeling something wet drip on his forehead. He looked up to see a snoring Knuckles, head leaned back, mouth wide open and drooling on him. _Ugh! Great._ He sneered, _Just what I need a bath._ Drying himself off, Sonic rolled out of Knuckles grasp, landing on the couch cushion beside him, and reached for the remote. _Wonder where everyone else is? Ah well._ He put away the thought flipping through the channels. _They'll show up soon enough, might as well relax and find something to watch._

"Hey, you're awake!" Came a familiar voice. Sonic looked behind him to see Amy and Shadow returning. He smiled, waving, then pointed to the unconscious echidna. Amy chuckled, "Looks like we need a babysitter for the babysitter." Sonic raised an eyebrow to that. He didn't need a babysitter; he was 19 years old, for Chaos' sake! "Hey, Knucklehead." Amy spoke gently, shaking the red one's shoulder, "Wake up, you are relieved of your duty."

"Huh, wha?! Don't worry, Amy." The echidna tiredly yawned, "I've got the little rascal right here see... wha-where'd he go?!" Knuckles frantically jumped up, searching underneath the couch, cushions for his charge. Shadow rolled his eyes, "He's right beside you, fists for brains." Sonic waved his little arms, "Yeah, I'm right here!" Knuckles griped his chest, sighing in relief, "Whew! Scared me there for a second." He lifted the blue ball, wagging a finger at him, "Don't you do that again, little mister!" Sonic gaped, "What?! I was right here the whole time you-"

"Uh...guys, what's Sonic doing?" Amy asked, pointing to the gesturing hedgie. "Ah, Sonic has resorted to using sign language since he is unable to communicate verbally in this state." Shadow informed, "Apparently a skill, which Tails has just recently enlightened us, that the fuzzball has kept secret."

"Really? Wow! So, do either of you understand him?"

"Unfortunately, yes, I do understand what the little squirt is saying."

"Yeah, well f-"Sonic abruptly stopped signing when Shadow glared at him, curling his left hand around a glowing ball of chaos energy, "And he better watch his hands if he knows what's good for him." Sonic quickly closed his hands, pulling them close; Shadow grunted in satisfaction, having shut up is rival. Amy and Knuckles awkwardly looked at each other, both only understanding half of what just happened. "Oookaaay, soooo, Sonic. Wanna see your new room?" Amy asked.

Said hedgehog cocked his head at her in question 'new room?' Amy giggled. Not needing a translator to know what he was asking, she waved the boys to follow her down the hallway. Turning to the first door to the left, Amy opened the door wide, revealing the guest room turned nursery.

Sonic's mouth dropped in horror, seeing the freshly painted baby blue room. Inside was everything a baby could dream of. Soft peach carpet floors, a changing table with his name printed on the side in colorful blocks, a dresser filled with diapers and clothes, grass green rocking chair, a toy chest filled to the brim, and in the center of it all, a deep blue crib with a race car themed mobile. Sonic gurgled, opening and closing his mouth like a fish. This had to be a joke, no! A nightmare, it just had to be there was no other explanation for this, this atrocity! Why couldn't he wake up?!

"Awwww! It's so cute!" Knuckles gushed, rushing into the room with the horrified blue blur. Amy giggled, "Yes, I found most everything on sale too. Oh! You wouldn't believe the deals I got on some of these clothes!" Amy squealed, pulling out a red onesie that said, 'Mama's little stinker' Sonic's eyes twitched. Shadow hummed, sliding his hand on the wooden crib, "With my skilled handcraft-manship, everything came together quite nicely. You picked some good quality pieces here, Rose." he complimented. "Aww, you're so sweet, Shadow!" Amy waved off, turning to the still babbling blue blob in Knuckles' arms. "Now that your room is finished, we can get you set up, little one."

Sonic snapped out of his stupor as Amy grabbed him from his sides and placed him on the changing table. _What? Wha-what's going on?_ Sonic's eyes grew in confusion as Amy gently pushed him down; he looked to Knuckles and Shadow for help, only to find both of them had disappeared.

"Uh, Uh." Sonic uneasily stuttered, his heart racing. He felt the soft padding underneath him, eyeing the nursery again, the dots slowly began to connect. _I'm in a nursery, lying on a changing table, am I-I-I about to be babied?_ "Here we go~" Amy sang, pulling out a poofy white diaper and powder. Sonic blushed, eyes bugging out, seeing the disposable baby tool, "Amy, no. Stop!" He pleaded, unfortunately, he forgot that Amy didn't understand a word of his gestures, "Awww, look, you're so excited! Hold still, and I can get it on." She clicked the straps over his tummy so he wouldn't fall. Sonic wiggled and kicked his pudgy legs wildly, shaking his head, screaming inside. _Nononononononono! I'm not a baby! I'm not a baby! I don't want to be diapered!_

"Come on, Sonic." she grunted, "Stay still! Ah-ha!" she cheered, having grabbed hold of his ankles. She lifted his legs, placing the white padding under his bottom, making sure his little tail poked out of the assigned tail hole; she dusted the powder onto his crotch, then pulled up the front snuggly on his waist up to his belly and closed the tapes. "There we are!" She pulled him up to her chest, patting his bottom.

Sonic's cheeks were a fierce red; this was so embarrassing. Here he was, a 19-year-old having just been diapered by his female friend, shaking; he moaned in defeat, hiding his head in her neck. He felt weird and didn't want visual confirmation of what had just happened.

Suddenly his stomach grumbled. Sonic's eyes flew open, tightening his grip on her shirt, "Oop! It sounds like someone is hungry. Come on, let's get you something to eat." Amy rubbed his back and patted his bottom once more before carrying him out to the kitchen. His ears perked up, happy to have something to distract his recent...well, let's just not think about it. _Food? Finally, something good. I hope she makes chili dogs._


	5. Chapter 5 Hydrophobic Bath Time

Amy and the newly padded clad hero returned to the rest of his male companions, waiting for them at the dining table. Sonic eagerly looked around for any indication of what was for dinner but didn't see a sign of Amy's cooking. He leaned back in her arms, looking at her with a questing brow; Amy giggled at him, "Don't worry, Sonic, I've got you covered, just wait here a moment."

Shadow pulled out a high chair from out of nowhere, placing it on one end of the table, "Neh! Neh!" Sonic whined like a little toddler, "No, chair! No, chair!" Shadow just ignored his complaints as Amy set him down, securing him inside with the straps along the front of his waist and diaper, then fully insured his confinement, clicking the tray table in place. The baby hedgehog angrily grabbed the sides of the tray, struggling to remove it. Shadow grabbed his little hands and moved them to his sides, then returned to his seat, warning Sonic with a glare to try and attempt to escape again.

He silently gulped, crossing his arms, and pouted instead, hoping that food would come soon. A minute later, his nose twitched to a delicious aroma flowing in the air; he raised his head and sniffed, identifying the yummy scent. _Onions, garlic, cheese, pepper, meat...chili dogs?_ His guess was confirmed when Amy walked by with a Sonic dozen of yes...chili dogs! Sonic couldn't help but drool at the sight. He reached out, making grabbing motions with his little hands as the plate passed by him. Amy pushed the plate away from the drooling hedgie, "No, no, Sonic, that's not for you." said Amy. Disappointed and confused with his ears bent down, he asked, "What?!"

"This is your dinner," Amy said, pulling out a small jar of baby food. She scooped up some of the pale goopy mess with a little plastic spoon and moved it to his mouth, "It's mashed bananas, your favorite! Now open wide for the choo choo train." She cooed. Knuckles and Shadow quietly snickered in the background enjoying their chili dog dinner. Sonic couldn't help but blush, offended by the baby talk. He leaned back, lips closed tight, shaking his head. He didn't want bananas even if it was his favorite fruit, especially since it was mashed into baby food, and he didn't want to be feed; he wanted those chili dogs!

"Come on, Sonic, you love bananas." she tried encouraging him. Sonic was known as much for his speed as his stubbornness; he shook his head again. Amy stopped, and with a devious smile, she began to tickle his tiny tan feet; she knew his ticklish spots, his feet being the most sensitive, which was why he always had them covered. _Oh, curse that pink menace!_ Sonic thought, trying desperately to hold in his laughter. He didn't last for more than a few seconds before erupting in a fit of giggles.

Before her window of opportunity closed, Amy quickly shoved in the baby food. Sonic choked for a minute, his mouth now full of mush before swallowing, he pouted at Amy for her trickery. "Sorry, Sonic, we can keep doing this the hard way, or we could do this the easy way." She held up another spoon full, letting him chose. Either way, he still had to eat the stuff. _Might as well save myself from her torture._ He thought, "Can you let me feed myself at least?" He wasn't going to be babied any further if he could help it; he listened for her answer as Shadow translated for him. "I don't see why not." Amy blinked, putting the jar on the tray table, and turned the spoon around for him to grab.

Gratefully taking the spoon, Sonic began eating. Well, he tried to eat, he kept missing his mouth, hitting everywhere else on his face instead, covering himself with his dinner. Knuckles and Amy giggled while Shadow silently chuckled at his attempts. His stomach moaned again, "Spass!" Sonic growled in frustration, throwing the spoon aside and used his hands, smiling, finally able to eat the rest of the sweet fruit.

Amy' tsked' and went to grab a rag from the kitchen, rinsing it in the sink. She walked back to the little hedgehog covered in banana mush and began wiping it off his face. "Mph!" he complained. She was rough and wiped some up his nose; he sneezed and rubbed his nose, trying to get it out. "Oh, Sonic, you're such a messy eater." Amy teased,

"Yeah, he's worse than me." said Knuckles with remnants of chili dog all around his mouth. Amy finished wiping his face while Shadow collected and rinsed the dishes, ending dinner. She clicked off the straps and tray table, pulling him out of the high chair. _More like a prison chair._ Sonic glared at the plastic furniture piece. "Whew!" Amy sniffed, "You're a messy and stinky little boy; you need a bath."

 _B-B-B-Bath!?_ Sonic felt like he was going to faint right in her arms. There was a reason why he hated and stayed far away from water. He was terrified of it! Quite ironic since he lived by the beach. On an island. Surrounded by water.

Sonic was frozen, petrified, and didn't notice Amy's humming as she walked away from the table to the kitchen, turning the faucet on warm water filling in the sink. He didn't even acknowledge her taking off the diaper, leaving him completely naked, too far gone in his thoughts of his hydrophobia. It wasn't until she lowered him down, toes touching first, that he reacted, screeching to the top of his lungs failing. _I'm gonna drown. I'm gonna drown!_

"Sonic! Sonic! Calm down. It's ok." Amy tried to reassure the terrified blue blur while also trying not to drop him, but he didn't stop fidgeting, his fear-filled screams increased in volume tears streaming down, and fighting her with all his might. "Whoa! What's going on?!" Knuckles rushed in, "It's Sonic's hydrophobia; I can't get him to calm down!"

"Well, first of all, stop trying to drop him in!" Shadow yelled, "I'm trying!" Amy yelled back, "Here!" Shadow pulled himself, Knuckles, and Amy together, restraining the frantic fuzz ball in the middle.

The group hug's pressure seemed to help after a few minutes, Sonic's squirming became less frantic, and his cries died down to whimpers. He stopped moving when Knuckles pet his quills again. Shadow waited a few more minutes to be sure that he was calm, "There, finally." Shadow breathed, releasing the group hug. Sonic covered his face, shaking, and heart still beating fast as Knuckles rubbed his back, "I think we need a different strategy." says Amy feeling a bit guilty for scarring Sonic so much, "Oh really, you think so?" Shadow muttered sarcastically, "Shadow! I didn't think he would freak out that much."

"No, of course, someone with almost crippling hydrophobia wouldn't react that way at all." He nodded in Sonic's direction. Amy frowned at Shadow, then looked back to her blue friend with an apologetic expression. "Sonic..." she spoke lowly, placing a hand on his tiny shoulder, "I'm sorry." Sonic looked back at her with a small smile to show he had no hard feelings. Amy felt grateful for his forgiving spirit, "Thanks." she whispered.

* * *

They left Sonic alone in the living room, giving him some more time to collect himself; his friends took this time to brainstorm how to bathe their little hydrophobic friend with as little trauma as possible.

After their discussion, the three adults nodded in agreement, leaving Amy to put the plan in motion. She walked up to the little hedgie, "Sonic." He looked up at her caring jade eyes as she bent down onto her knees to his level, "We know you don't like water," he nodded, "And I know usually you stick to showers, but you're too little right now to have one on your own. You have to take baths now, but before you say anything!" Amy waved her hands in defense when his eyes shot up, "Knuckles, Shadow, and I have been talking, and I think we've come up with a way to make this easier for all of us and less scary for you."

Although disliking the news, he had to take baths now. His ear twitched, intrigued. "For this to work, though, we need you to trust us, ok? Do you trust us?" Without a second thought, Sonic nodded. Amy smiled, relieved that he did trust her, and lifted him under his arms, "Great! So, what we're gonna do is; Knuckles is gonna hold you while I quickly get you cleaned. The minute we're finished, Shadow will be ready and waiting with a towel to take you out of the water. We'll all keep watch and make sure nothing bad happens." she explained to him, walking back to the 'bath' sink.

Sonic anxiously glanced at his friends, then the sink whimpering, "Hey," Knuckles gently spoke. Sonic looked up to his giant red friend, "We'll be right here, little blue." Sonic sucked in a deep breath. He really didn't want to do this. "Ok," he said. Amy handed him to Knuckles making sure his grip was firm yet didn't squeeze the little hedgehog too much, and slowly placed him in the liquid substance. "Close your eyes," Amy warned; he obeyed as she quickly got to work.

She grabbed a cup and dumped the water over his head, squeezing out some baby soap into her hands. She scrubbed his quills and arms. Sonic whimpered again when the water hit his face. He gripped one of Knuckles' fingers to reassure himself that his lifeline was still there. He couldn't help but giggle and kick a foot in reflex when Amy started to scrub his sensitive belly. _This...this isn't too bad. She's quick and whatever soap she's using smells nice._ The bath wasn't as horrible as he had feared, and the lavender-scented soap helped him relax a little bit.

"Knuckles, could you lean him back a bit so I can get his legs? Thanks." Amy scrubbed Sonic's now stubby legs starting with his feet and moving up, _Woah Woah Woah! Wait a sec!_ Sonic thought in alarm as she got closer to his crotch, startled Sonic jolted and squeaked when he felt Amy wiping down his...area, he blushed again as his teenager status went thoroughly down the drain along with the bubbles as she dumped another cup of water on him.

Everything went blurry after that. One minute he was being held by Knuckles, sopping wet the next, he was wrapped in a soft towel being rubbed dry by Shadow; he shivered at the sudden temperature change. "We need to get him warm quickly," Shadow said, continuing to rub Sonic down. He carried him back to the nursery, Amy and Knuckles, not far behind.

"I've got it from here, Shadow." Says Amy when they enter the nursery, taking the wrapped up hedge hoglet," Knuckles, you wanna pick out some warm pj's?" He nodded, opening a drawer going through the various outfits while Amy unwrapped Sonic from his cocoon, gently pushing him down on the changing table. Sonic shivered again, now exposed to the chilly air trying to be patient (not one of his best traits), waiting for his warm clothes.

Amy pulled out a new diaper and the baby powder, "Please be still, Sonic." she reminded him. Just wanting to get warm as soon as possible, Sonic resigned himself to his diapered fate and didn't fight her this time. She pulled his legs up, placing the crinkly padding underneath, poked his tail through the hole, and applied the baby powder. Sonic felt a wave of comfort wash over him when he smelled the powder; he felt like just before he passed out in that glass tube earlier today.

It was nice; the soft padding on his bottom, the comforting smell of the baby powder, and even the leftover fragrance of the lavender soap from the bath made him feel very relaxed and sleepy. He cutely yawned as Amy finished tapping him up. Knuckles returned with a pair of purple footy pajamas, a sleeping sloth stitched on the front. Amy placed his feet, arms, and head into the correct holes before snapping up the crotch and patted his bottom, "There we go, nice and comfy...Shadow, do you have the bottle?"

"Right here." Shadow handed her the warm milk bottle. He smirked, seeing the babyfied hero fighting the sleep in his eyes. _This will knock him out._ The ebony hog humorously mused. Amy cradled the blue blur to the rocking chair and set him in up her lap, "Here you go, Sonic, drink this." Sonic rubbed his eyes again, scowling at the nipple in his face, "No, thanks."

"Come on, Sonic, please, you've got to be thirsty, and this will help you sleep." Thirsty or not, he didn't want the bottle, "Don't want it." he says, shaking his head, pushing the nipple away. "Don't make me tickle you..." she warned him. He humphed at her threat but, not wanting a repeat of what happened at dinner, hesitatingly opened his mouth, allowing the nipple in. He looked at the bottle in his face quizzically, wasn't something supposed to happen? _Where's_ _the milk?_ Amy chuckled, "You have to suck, silly."

 _Oh, right...I knew that._ He flustered and started to suckle, downing about half the bottle before he stopped falling asleep from the warm milk in his belly. "Aawww." Amy and Knuckles cooed at the sight; Shadow smiled softly as a tiny thumb unconsciously crept into the blue blur's mouth. Shadow walked to the dresser picking up a red pacifier switching it for his thumb. He sucked in content while Amy laid him into the crib, covering him up in a red blanket, and turned on the mobile, gently playing a soft lullaby. The group tiptoed out, turning off the lights before leaving the little hedgie for the night.


	6. Chapter 6 Accidents

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bold text indicates dream sequence.

Sonic dreamed his favorite dream, running and running in an endless vast open space leaving him plenty of room to push himself to the limit and making as many sonic booms as he could. Sometimes Shadow would be there too, giving him someone to race with, but this dream was a little different than normal.

**He was alone, rapidly moving along the speed of sound; as he continued, was about to push ahead to make another sonic boom, he saw a cliff quickly coming up ahead. Sonic brakes digging his heels to the ground, trying to stop himself, but he was going too fast and fell over the cliff face, screaming until he landed with a thud! The narrow walls surrounding him vibrating from the impact. He covered his ears from the ringing and found himself standing...in a glass tube.**

**An alarmed expression crossed his face, looking up. He could see the opening where he fell in closing, "Nonononno!" He jumped to reach the top, hoping to pull himself out before it was too late, but he couldn't jump high enough. The top closed with a hiss, he resorted to punching and kicking the walls. Adrenaline pumping through his body, heart beating fast, sweating up a storm, he desperately tries to break himself out before the deadly gas is released. He looks up again, seeing said substance pour in twice as fast as last time; Sonic sucks in a deep breath, hoping that not inhaling the gas will save him.**

**The pink fumes completely envelop him for a few moments before it begins to disappear mysteriously; he gasps, gulping in the fresh air once it's gone, and begins to feel his body. _Everything feels normal._ He looks at his reflection to see he still looks like his 19-year-old self, "Whew!" Sonic weakly sighs in relief. His voice somehow changed to a higher pitch, but he doesn't give it a thought, "That was a close one." He chuckles and lazily gazes down his legs; his eyes shoot up as high as they could go when he spots something that definitely wasn't there before.**

**Wrapped around his waist is a big fluffy pink diaper. He stares at himself, eyes and mouth twitching wanting to scream and yank the thing off, but his body doesn't react. Instead, he blushes, a goofy smile creeps on his face, and he laughs in giddiness before everything fades into black.**

* * *

Sonic blinks his eyes open, "Oh man," he slurs, the pacifier popping out of his mouth, "What a weird dream...what the?" he turns to the side, seeing tall bars surrounding him. "Am I in prison? No, wait...prisons aren't this comfortable and...don't have stuffed animals." He pushed away a plush cheetah he had apparently cuddled with during the night. He concluded wherever he was was not his shacks, having not woken up in his hammock. Suddenly memories of what happened yesterday flooded his mind. "Oh, shit! All of that wasn't a dream...that, that really happened...oh my Chaos, that really happened!" He looked down at his body and the diaper hidden by the PJs in dismay; he teared up but held himself back from letting them go.

He wasn't a baby, he was a 19-year-old hedgehog, stuck in a 1-year-old body, and Tails, his best buddy and little brother, was going to fix him. "Yeah," he bolstered himself up, blinking the tears away, "Tails will fix this in no time, everything will go back to normal, and this can all be forgotten!"

Determined to keep his spirits up, he shakily pushed himself to his feet, "A-a-and one way is to get m-myself up and walking." he waved his little arms around trying to keep his balance, stumbling on the soft mattress, he grabbed the crib bars butt halfway up in the air. "Maybe should' a tried doing this on the actual floor." he mumbled, "But how to get out?" looking up, Sonic spotted the latch high up at the end of the crib. He smirked. Using the bars to steady himself, he slowly stumbled to the end, realizing he couldn't reach the latch at this current height. He eyed the stuffed animals thoughtfully, let himself go, and began collecting and stacking all the ones available. He climbed to the top, successfully reaching the latch, and released the bars.

The little hedgehog tumbled to the ground along with the plushies landing on his padded bottom, "Oof, well...at least this thing is good for something." he groaned, dusting himself off. Sonic tried again to stand on his feet. "Haha!" He cheered, standing straight up, but immediately dropped back on his butt when he tries to take a step, "Ohhhh." he whined, sitting upright again, "Guess I'm stuck with crawling for now." his repeated falls left him with a growing need to use the bathroom, not having gone since yesterday afternoon.

Quickly he rolled onto his knees, crawling to the bedroom door. _Perfect._ He thought sarcastically. The doorknob was up even higher than the latch, crawling back to the crib. He gathered all the plushies he could carry to the door, stacking them up again. It didn't even come close to the knob. He felt a tingling sensation indicating that he would have a used diaper if he didn't get out of the room soon. Sonic anxiously looked around for anything else he could use to give his makeshift ladder more height; spotting the toy chest, he crawled as fast as he could and began digging through its contents. He pulled out a; toy car, rattle, ball, key rings, a toy phone, stackable rings, and blocks.

Tossing the rest of the toys aside, Sonic pushed the blocks to the ladder, butt wiggling in the air. If he had been standing, he would be doing the potty dance right now, swiftly he tore down the plushie ladder stacking the blocks in its place, then added the plushies on top. _Please let this work, please let this work, please let this work._ He silently pleaded, climbing to the top. He stretched himself up to the handle, but it was still too far for him to reach; the ladder wobbled as Sonic futilely continued to extend himself. He was not going to go in the diaper. He'd rather explode.

Unstable ladder giving way, the little hoglet yelped, falling with his plushies again landing on his rump, a little bit of pee escaping. He instinctively put his hands in-between his legs crossing them, desperately trying to hold it in. His bladder felt like it was about to burst. Despite his desperate attempts, his body couldn't hold it anymore and gave in; he felt a warm sensation flood all around the front. Slowly the diaper expanded, the warm pee pressing against him, the footie pajamas restricting the diaper's expansion as he continued to go.

Sonic felt so ashamed of himself, a blush covering his face, tears welling up again as he tried to hide from no one there. He was supposed to be a hero, fully capable of taking on evil villains, destroying their weapons and robots, foiling their plans daily, and be able to wait and use the potty like a big boy. Yet, here he was in a nursery, having just wet himself like a little baby with a full diaper in the morning. He felt like a helpless baby and couldn't help but cry.

* * *

Being a female and, therefore, more attuned to the signs of a young one needing care, Amy awoke to the sound of a baby's cry. She rushed into the nursery, finding the little hoglet out of his crib, toys strewn all over the place, crying his eyes out, "Oh my goodness." she whispered. Amy immediately checked him over, making sure he wasn't hurt. With no sign of injury, she picked up and cradled the sobbing hedgie. Feeling under his bottom, Amy knew exactly what the problem was, "Oh, Sonniku, it's ok, it's ok. Don't worry, Mama will fix you right up." she cooed.

Sonic fussed when Amy felt the nasty wet diaper and continued to cry. He was so upset with himself and wanted out of this disgusting thing.

Amy gently laid him on the changing table, strapping him in, and bent down to grab the baby powder, wipes, and a new diaper. She set them aside, opening the snaps on his crotch, exposing the christened diaper. Sonic sniffed, wiping the tears from his eyes hiccuping as his pink friend cleaned him up. Amy opened the diaper, making sure to hold the front part in-between them a moment in case the cold air made him wet again. Lifting him by the ankles, she removed the used diaper, pulled out a wipe, and cleaned his area. Once clean, she put the wipe in the dirty diaper tossing it in the odor-protected pail.

Sonic shivered from the cold air and wipe. He looked away a small blush on his face and watched her throw away the dirty diaper hating that he thought of it as 'his diaper.' Though he was relieved to have the thing removed, the worst part was over.

She placed him in a new diaper and powdered his bottom; the powder hit his nose, easing his tension. He cutely smiled a bit, adding to the blush. This part of the diapering process was at least enjoyable. Amy warmly smiles when she sees him not upset anymore. Glad to see Sonic starting to warm up to the baby treatment, she pulls up the front nice and snug, tapping it closed, and snapped the purple footie back on. She couldn't resist his cute face and tickled his tummy, making him squeal, _He's so cute, and his laughter is adorable!_ She gushed.

Finished with the change, she hoisted the now smiling baby hedgehog into her arms, "What d'ya say we get ourselves some breakfast?" she hummed. Sonic rested his head on her shoulder, nodding in agreement hoping today would be a better day.

The two left the nursery, making their way into the kitchen; she turned on the lights and placed Sonic into the high chair. "I'm thinking of making pancakes for us and giving you either yogurt or some cereal, which would you like?" Amy asked as she gathers all the necessary ingredients. She pulled out a cup of yogurt and a box of cereal, waiting for him to indicate which he wanted.

Thinking cereal might be easier to eat himself, he pointed to the box, "Cereal it is!" Amy says, placing a small bowl of dry cereal in front of him, "Do you need help?" Sonic shook his head, reaching into the bowl for a fist full of breakfast, and ate happily, noting in his head to stick with finger-friendly foods for now.

Shadow walked into the house a short time later, seeing Amy place freshly made pancakes, a bowl full of assorted berries, butter, and syrup on the table, "Morning Shadow!" she greeted. Shadow grunted, taking a seat plating himself up some breakfast, "I heard you get up early this morning. Where did you go?" Amy asked, plating herself some pancakes too. "I went out to go do my daily training exercises. I find early mornings a more efficient time to do them without any distractions." he grabbed a few strawberries and lightly poured the maple syrup on his pancakes, "At 3 in the morning?" she asked. "I don't require as much sleep." Amy was shocked and admittedly a bit jealous, "Wow, I bet that's nice you have more time to get a lot more done."

"Eh," he shrugged, taking a bite, "More time to be bored as well."

"Is that why you're so grouchy all the time?" Sonic asked, munching on the last bits of his cereal, "At least I don't need to sleep as much as some." Shadow quipped with a smirk, "At least I have a cheerful disposition!" Sonic smugly rebutted. "Wow!" Shadow said with fake shock, "I'm surprised the little baby knows such a big word! Did Tails teach you that one yesterday?" Sonic's cheeks turned as red as the strawberries.

This is exactly why he didn't tell anyone about his past. He looked down in shame; ears bent back. Shadow's smirk switched to a frown seeing Sonic's self-conscious reaction after saying that last part. He felt guilty, he understood and respected that some parts of one's history were not to be freely talked or joked about, and he had just overstepped that line.

"Hey, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that." he apologizes. Sonic didn't react, fiddling with his purple footie, "Actually, it's astonishing that you learned to talk when you did!" Sonic looked up, raising a brow, seeming to ask, 'really'?

"Yes, anyone else at that age wouldn't have been smart enough or bothered themselves to learn, but you must be pretty smart and perceptive to learn something that must have been difficult for you." Shadow reached out, picking up a strawberry, and placed it in front of the blue blur as a symbol of peace, softly smiling, "And I respect those who are open-minded." Sonic gazed at the peace offering then back at him. _Shadow actually respects me?!_ Using both his hands, he grabbed the small (but to him, it was quite large) strawberry, smiled, and took a bite showing he accepted his apology.

Amy only understood half of the conversation but knew Shadow was being nice and clasped her hands up to her face. "Aaaaawwww! Shadow, that was so sweet!" Both male hedgehogs sweatdropped and blushed, forgetting that the pink one had watched the whole exchange. Thankfully a certain red echidna and yellow fox just walked in the door. "Hey, guys!" Tails waved, "How did last night go?"

"We had a few problems last night, but we got it all worked out," said Amy. "Have you gotten the results from the test yet?" Shadow asked. "No, I won't have those until tomorrow. Until then, I was thinking last night," Tails looked to Amy, "Amy, could you come with me to the tunnels? I wanna see if we can find anything that might help me fix Sonic on those computers."

"Sure, Tails! But...what about Sonic? Who's going to take care of him while we're gone?"

"Why not me and Shadow?" Knuckles asked. "I don't know... do you think you two can handle it?" she asked worriedly, "Please, I wouldn't be the Ultimate Life-form if I didn't know how to take care of an infant." Shadow scoffed, "Besides, someone has to watch Knucklehead over there and make sure the village is protected from Eggman."

"Ok, are you alright with that, Sonic?" Amy politely asked, "Yeah, it's cool. I don't wanna go back to those creepy tunnels anyway." he signed.

"Perfect. Let me just grab some stuff from my workshop, met me there when your ready, Amy."

"Ok, I'll be there in a few Tails."

"Cool! See ya later, guys!" Tails winked as he left.


	7. Chapter 7 Meh Burger

"Ok, I've already got some cold bottles of milk and apple juice waiting in the fridge for when he gets thirsty, baby food is in the cabinets, there's also a diaper bag underneath the changing table if you guys decide to go out, and-"

"Rose, will you please leave." Shadow growled, "Yeah, don't worry, Ames, we've got this!" Knuckles pulled the annoyed hedgehog into a headlock, "Ok, ok. I'll go." Amy hugged Sonic and kissed him on the cheek before giving him to Shadow, "I'll be back soon, baby, be on your best behavior." she said with a motherly tone bopping his nose. "Yes, yes, now go!" Shadow waved, pushing her out the door, and swiftly closed it. "Chaos, you'd think that girlfriend of yours was your mother." Sonic glared at Shadow, wiping away the kiss. "Not my girlfriend, and definitely not my mother!"

"Uh-huh, sure she isn't." he teased, "She's not!" Shadow ignored his denial, "Well, what do you want to do now?"

"Got any more pancakes left?" Knuckles asks, holding his growling stomach. They all look back at the table, seeing nothing but empty plates, "Guess we're going out." says Sonic. "Meh Burger!" he and Knuckles cheer. Shadow places his free hand on his hip-shaking his head, "Alright, let me clean this mess up, and then we can go. Knuckles keep Sonic occupied until I'm done." he hands over Sonic to his large friend and walks into the kitchen to work.

"Alright! Come on!" Knuckles says, hurrying to the nursery, "Wow! You sure have a lot of toys." he comments. Seeing the toys thrown out of the toy chest, he sits down Indian style, placing Sonic in front of him. "What do babies like to play with?" he mused, scratching his chin; Sonic rolled his eyes with a bored expression. His friend must have forgotten that though he looked like a baby, that didn't mean he actually was a baby. The only toy out in the room that he was even remotely interested in was the toy car, not that he knew what to do with it. As a kid, he didn't have any toys or the time to play as a kid should; he was too busy trying not to starve. Besides, everything else was too babyish.

"Maybe you'll like this." Knuckles picked up the sky blue rattle shaking it in his face. _Uh-huh yeah, sure this is so-_ his eyes lit up, pupils dilated, staring at the rattle. Sonic cooed and giggled, reaching for the toy, Knuckles gave it to him, and he shook it, enjoying the noise it made. He snapped out it, _Wait a minute, what am I doing? It's just a stupid rattle. It shouldn't be...this much...fun?_ He experimentally shook the toy one more time much harder and shrieked, giggling with delight seeing it light up. Knuckles chuckled at the adorableness. "Do you liiiiikeeee this?" he asked, picking up and showing him the plush cheetah bobbing it up and down, talking with a funny voice, "Hi, my name is Speedy, and I wanna be your best friend!" Sonic dropped the rattle, distracted by the plush, "Aaaaaahhh!" he smiled, hugging the soft toy that was three times as big as he was, cooing in happiness. "Just when I think you can't get any cuter!" Knuckles decided to have a little fun himself; he got on his belly and playfully growled, "I'm gonna get you!" Flicking his fingers at the little hedgie who shrieked, crawling away, taking the plush with him.

"You can't escape!" Knuckles growled again, lumbering after him; the blue blur giggled at his silliness. He couldn't remember the last time he'd ever had this much fun. Beating Eggman was fun for sure, but this was different and just as, maybe if not more fun. Tail wagging, he scurried under the crib, thinking his large friend wouldn't be able to reach him there. He looked out, not seeing the red echidna. Suddenly he felt something tug his leg then quickly pull him back, "You can run, but you never can hide from the Tickle Monster!" Knuckles grunts pulling the baby hedgie out, turning him on his back, and razzberries his little tummy. Sonic screamed and giggled at Knuckle's sneak attack flailing when his belly is mercilessly razzberried.

Shadow walks into the nursery and chuckles, leaning on the doorframe, watching the giant echidna play with the hysterical hedge hoglet. "You better stop pretty soon, Knuckles or blue will be as red as you." Startled by the voice, Knuckles stops his tickling, "What? Oh! Sorry 'bout that little blue." Sonic says nothing laying in a starfish position, panting with a huge grin on his face, trying to get his breath back; that had been exhausting but fun!

"Let me get him changed, and we can go." Shadow picks up Sonic, his natural blue color returning to his face, and placed him on the changing table. After unsnapping and removing the footie, he noticed that Sonic was wet; bending down, he grabbed the supplies and untapped the diaper. Sonic looked at Shadow, puzzled as to why he was taking off his diaper. He didn't use it, did he? He looked further down, seeing the yellow stain that said he did, his bladder releasing probably during Knuckle's tickle attack, he blushed. _I-I-I didn't even feel it this time._

A minute later, his embarrassment washed away when Shadow began applying the baby powder and smiled peacefully. Shadow noticed the small baby smile and smirked, "Seems someone is enjoying their diapers." Sonic looked away, blushing and still smiling. He wasn't about to admit that he might be starting to like being diapered.

Shadow wipes his hands after finishing the change, "I think we'll leave you with just a diaper and socks. It's supposed to be quite hot today. Knuckles go grab a bottle of milk and apple juice each while I get the bag ready." Knuckles salutes, marching out while Shadow picks up Sonic and sets him down on the floor. Grabbing the empty diaper bag underneath the table, he begins to fill it. While Shadow was busy, Sonic crawls back to his toys looking for Speedy; he sees the plush still under the crib where he left it, smiling tail wagging, he pulls the stuffed cat out and hugs its soft fur. Shadow zips up the full diaper bag, heaving it over his shoulder before lifting Sonic, still clutching his plushie into his arms, "Alright, squirt, let's go get Knuckles feed."

* * *

Sonic suckled the cold apple juice while being cradled by Shadow. Knuckles sat across the table, enjoying his Meh Burger breakfast. Though it was early in the day, the summer heat was already beating down on the island. Sonic was grateful for Shadow to have had the foresight to leave him in just the diaper and socks and bring something cold for him to drink. He pushed away the bottle when he finished.

"What do you guys wanna do after this?" Sonic asked, "Hmmm..." Knuckles contemplated with a full mouth, "We could play coconut hurl, volleyball, go for a swim, have a race-" Shadow sighed, "Knuckles, it seems you have forgotten. Sonic is currently incapable of doing any of those activities."

"Oh, well...what do you suggest?" he shrugged.

"We could go for a walk, play video games, hang out at the beach, watch a movie."

"Why don't we hang out at Amy's, watch a movie, and play video games? I don't want to give people or Eggman too many opportunities to see me like... this." Sonic gestured, "Sounds good to me!" Knuckles stuffed down the rest of his meal, "Sensible too, we can stay out of this miserable heat." Shadow grumbled, glaring up; having black fur was advantageous in most cases, just not on hot summer days.

The guys were just about to leave the one-star restaurant when unexpectedly (even though this happens on an almost daily basis) screams and the sound of something exploding was heard. Up ahead, a group of Crab-bots and Bee-bots were causing havoc while Eggman hovers above in his Eggmobile, commanding Burn-bot to burn everything in sight. Shadow growled, "That idiot just doesn't know when to quit. Here!" he shoved Sonic to Knuckles, "Stay out of the line of fire and get out of here, I'll put the fool in his place." leaving Knuckles to protect the defenseless speedster, Shadow skated into battle hoping to quickly diffuse the situation before any more of the village is burned down.

"Oh boy, come on, let's see where we can hide." Knuckles picked up the diaper bag and ran in the direction of the beach. Burn-bot fired a ball of flames, barely missing them blocking the path. He turned on his heels running the other direction into the forest. A Crab-bot jumped in his way, snapping its sharp metal pincers, not being able to punch the bot out of the way with his hands full, Knuckles turned again to the village. Unfortunately, Eggman, Shadow, Burn-bot, and some Bee-bots were battling in that direction. He saw no safe way to leave the battlefield, and Shadow was overwhelmed by Eggman's robots. He looked down at his charge, staring up at him, wondering what they were going to do.

He hated to leave his little buddy alone, but he needed to help Shadow if they were going to win this fight, "Ok, listen to me, little blue," he whispered in his ear, "I'm gonna hide you somewhere, and I don't want you to move until me or Shadow come back. Ya got it?" Sonic firmly nodded. Knuckles nodded back, opening the diaper bag he placed Sonic inside and hid the bag under a Meh Burger table, "I'll be back." he quickly whispered before running to Shadow for back up.

Sonic poked his head out of the bag hugging Speedy. Just because he had to stay out of the action didn't mean he couldn't watch Eggman get his butt kicked. This was the first time to his memory that he wasn't involved in a fight with the egg-shaped genius; he had wondered at times what it felt like to be a spectator instead of a player. Everything looked as he had imagined. _Cool!_ He awed in silence, watching Shadow chaos spear and blast ruthlessly with precision and focus the Bee-bots and Burn-bot. He cheered for Knuckles punching and kicking the Crab-bots away, swiping left and right with grace and power. The little ball of fur rooted for his friends, imitating their moves. _Yeah, give them two lefts then a right! Use a chaos spear... ohhh, right in the hard drive that'll show old Eggface! Gasp!_

Sonic ducked back into the bag a Bee-bot's laser almost hitting the table he was hiding under; Shadow disposed of the bot before it could fire again, then returned his attention to Burn-bot. Whimpering, Sonic poked his nose, followed by his head out the bag again. _That was a close one, Speedy._ He hugged the plushie sucking his thumb in comfort. _Man watching is almost as dangerous as fighting. At least Knuckles put me someplace out of the heat._

10 minutes of punching later, Knuckles had destroyed most of the Crab-bots and some of the Bee-bots, giving Shadow the ability to focus all his efforts now on Burn-bot, who had stopped firing at the village and was using his flame thrower on Shadow. The ebony hog dodged its flames, landing in a crouch. Between the summer heat and the fires, he was beginning to get a little tired.

He growls in irritation, ready to end the fight, "Let's finish this, you useless piece of scrap." Shadow chaos spears it's right arm and pretends to run to its damaged component, it's optic eyes diverted to where it assumed where Shadow was going to hit next. Burn-bot fails to see him teleport behind and sends another chaos spear through its body, exposing its power source. He jumps onto its back and yanks away the battery tossing it right to Eggman's screaming face. "Nooooo! You miserable rodents ruined my brilliant plan! I'll get you for t- hold on a second." the doctor paused from his rant, clicking on his beeping wrist communicator, "What is it, Orbot?! I'm right in the middle of my evil rant!"

"Just letting you know that your washer stopped, and the honey glazed evil ham is almost done baking."

"Oooh! I've been waiting for two days for that ham! Alright, I'll be there by the time it's done." He hung up the communicator, "Sorry gotta run, we'll continue this next time. Toodles!" The Doctor waves leaving the scene without a care.

Shadow furiously roars at the insufferable doctor, leaving the battle before he can claim victory. He kicks the remains of Burn-bot, shooting it straight at a fire hydrant knocking it clean off. Water explodes out onto the fires, putting them out. Some of the local children yelling with delight, run towards the spewing gasket relishing the relief from the hot sun. Knuckles walks up to the angry and slightly damp hog, "Wow! When did we get a new water park?" Shadow grunted in annoyance, crossing his arms. "Wait a minute..." Shadow's eyes widened in realization, "What are you still doing here? Where's the baby?!"

"Helping you, duh, Team Knuckles was going to go down if I didn't step in, and what baby are you talking about?" Knuckles snorted the first part like it was obvious and scratched his head on the second. Shadow gripped Knuckle's shoulders, forcefully pulling him down, red eyes piercing, "You lost it?!" he barked. "Lost what?"

"The baby hedgehog, you're so-called leader and fastest thing alive, that annoying blue blur, SONIC!"

"Oh," Knuckles chuckled, "He's fine. I put him someplace safe."

"WHERE?" Shadow shook Knuckles back and forth, "He-e-e-e-e-e-e's u-u-u-undr th ya-a-a-a-a-a-a-ble-e-e-e." he pointed to the now scorched and blackened Meh Burger restaurant. Shadow zipped to the tables looking over and under them for any evidence of the blue blur's presence. "Sonic? Sonic? Sonic?!"

"Ah!" Came a squeak from one of the tables that wasn't severely burned; Shadow ran over and bent down to see something shuffling inside the diaper bag. Pulling it out, he unzipped the opening to see a fuzzy blue ball stare back at him, sucking his thumb with a smile. _Oh, thank Chaos!_ He sighed, taking Sonic out of the bag he hugged him. Sonic was surprised at his rival's reaction. Had Shadow been worried about him? The thought made him smile more as he rested his head on the white tufts on his chest.

After a moment, Shadow realized what he was doing and coughed, pulling his rival away from him, "Well, ahem. Glad to see that you're ok." Sonic crosses his arms with a cocky smirk and wiggles his eyebrows. _Uhuh, act like you don't care, Mr. Softy._ Shadow's usual scowl returned, "Whatever you're thinking, baby hedgehog, get it out of your head right now."

"Ok, ok, geez. You're even more in denial than I am, and I'm not a baby!" The hedgie rolls his eyes. His smirk rapidly turned into an uneasy frown; something felt wrong; he didn't feel right. Temperature rising quickly, he started to sweat and tremble. Shadow's scowl disappeared, changing to a worried expression. He pulled Sonic back to him; he didn't look good; he felt warm and was shaking. "Hey, what's wrong? Do you feel sick?" He tried to ask when out of nowhere. Sonic started to glow pink, "What the?!" he exclaims as he and Sonic are bathed in bright pink light.


	8. Chapter 8 What the?!

"Woah!" Shadow shouts, feeling an unexpected change in the weight of his arms. He catches himself and blinks in shock, seeing a now fully grown equally shocked Sonic still wearing a diaper in his arms. "Wha-what just happened?" Sonic softly stammers, "Uuuuhhhhh..." is all Shadow can say, "Hey little blue, you're big again! How'd you do that with the pretty pink light?" Knuckles asks. "Uhhhh..." Shadow and Sonic gape at each other, both clueless and thinking. _What the hell just happened?!_ Shadow shakes the cobwebs out of his head. Adjusting his hold, he examines the seemingly back to normal speedster. "Hmm, it looks like the pink gas has worn off. How do you feel?"

"Uh, I feel alright, I guess..."

"Alright then," Shadow dumps Sonic leaving him on the ground, "Get up. I'm not going to carry your lazy ass anymore."

"Lazy ass!" Sonic sputtered, lifting his face from the dirt, "I couldn't walk!" Shadow crosses his arms, "And now you can." Sonic grumbled, picking himself up. "By the way, nice job with Egghead, you guys did-Woah!" He waved his arms, trying to catch himself but felt right back on his face, "Don't worry, I gotcha blue." Knuckles yanked him up, dusting his shoulders, and patted his back. Sonic's legs wobbled, and he fell again,

"Ow." Came a pained muffle, Shadow hummed. He picks up Sonic by his shoulders, setting him on his feet while still keeping hold, "Can you walk?" Sonic's legs wobble and jiggle like crazy underneath him, "Augh, I-I-I don't think so. My legs feel like jello." He looks down at his legs in concern. This has never happened before.

Shadow, still keeping a firm grip on his shoulders, takes a few steps back, "Go ahead and try again." he lets go keeping his arms out; Sonic's legs shake even harder when he does so and immediately begins to fall. Shadow catches him before he falls on his face again, "Guess I still can't walk." Sonic mumbles sadly, "So it would seem." Despite his sorrow over his still useless legs, it takes less than a minute for Sonic's cocky attitude to return. "Guess that means you still have to carry my lazy ass."

"No," Shadow firmly pushes him backward, returning Sonic's cocky attitude with his own, "He is." Sonic grasps the large object behind him for balance, slowly he looks up at the red giant, "Huh, guess you're just a bigger baby now." Knuckles concludes, hoisting the blue blur up his shoulders. Eyes bugging out at that statement, Sonic felt the familiar sensation of a blush come over him, "Knuckles! I'm not a baby!" he exclaimed, feeling smaller than he was before as his friend puts him on his back piggyback style.

"Sure, you are! How else would you explain the diaper?" Knuckles asks, shaking his shoulders, making the white padding crinkle. Sonic fell silent, hearing his diaper crinkle, the red shade in his cheeks grew, having forgotten he was still wearing the thing. Shadow chuckled at his obvious embarrassment, "Enough teasing. Let's get back and call Tails to let him know what's up."

* * *

*Later at Amy's*

Knuckles slid Sonic down off his back, dumping him onto the couch, and he joined his friend to relax. Shadow clicked his communicator to life, pressing the Tails' icon; he placed a hand on his hip, waiting for the two-tailed fox to pickup. Tails image popped on the screen, "Hey guys! What's up?" Shadow, not one to beat around the bush, got to the point of his call, "We might have a complication on our hands."

"Oh, really? What happened?"

"Our little hedgehog is not so little anymore."

"What?! Is he back to normal? That's great!"

"Awwww! They grow up so fast!" Amy lamented in the background. Sonic fell forward, burying his face in his hands in his continued embarrassment.

"He's not totally back to normal; he still isn't able to walk."

"Really? I guess the gas affected him more than it would seem." Tails' tails whipped behind him on the screen. "Have you guys found anything yet?" Sonic asked, wanting to change the subject. Tails' thoughtful look broke at the question, "Oh yeah! We found a journal log and some other files in the computer systems that I think will help. Shadow, could you stay on the line and stop by my place real quick?" Shadow silently nodded before turning and dashing to the fox's workshop.

Shadow screeches to a halt, "Alright, I'm here." he says, pushing the workshop doors open. "Great! Go to my computer; it should be up and running already." Shadow saw said computer on a table just as Tails said, "Found it. Now what?"

"Take off your communicator. You should find a rectangular indent on one of the sides, press that, and plug the USB into the port." Shadow pulls off his wrist communicator and finds the notch; he gently pushes it and out pops a USB plug, inserting it into the computer. He waits for further instructions. "Ok, just give me a second, and I'll upload the files we've found into my system." A loading bar pops on the screen. 30 seconds later, a ding resounded, signaling the download was complete; Shadow unplugged his communicator, strapping it back on, he looked at Tails image on the small screen. "Great! That made things go a lot faster, thanks Shadow!" he chirped. "We should be back later this afternoon. I'll drop off Amy and pick up Sonic for more testing." Shadow 'hmphed' and ended the call.

* * *

After Shadow left, Knuckles and Sonic decided to play video games, and Sonic, as usual, was dominating Knuckles. "Augh! Come on, quit hitting me!"

"Hahaha! Yeah right! I'm totally gonna beat you, Knux."

"Nooooooo!" Knuckles cried as Sonic hit his character with a final blow; and did a victory dance on screen. "Welp, better luck next time, Knux." Sonic stretched, putting his controller on the coffee table, "I'll get you next time, little blue."

"Sure, you will," Sonic said under his breath, gripping the edge of the couch, Sonic shakily pushed himself up. Slowly he squatted up and down, trying to stand up while keeping his hands on the armrest for balance. Knuckles, still leaning back, silently chuckled, watching Sonic's unusual behavior. "What are you doing?"

"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm trying to stand up and walk."

"Really? You look like a bird bobbing up and down like that." Knuckles continued to laugh. "Yeah, well, you try doing this with your legs feeling like spaghetti."

"Here, let me help you," he says, standing up and reaches for Sonic's hands. He almost falls as Knuckles removes his hands from the couch, "Woa-Knux, what are you doing?!" Knuckles adjusts his grip to that like a parent would hold their child learning how to walk, "Helping you, come on, try and take a few steps." Sonic worriedly looks up at his friend. Once again, feeling very tiny, his cheeks lit up a bright pink, legs rocking underneath him. "O-o-o-k." he says and tries to take a step. With his giant red friend keeping him steady, Sonic can slowly walk from the couch to the dining table. "That's it! There you go! Now, do it on your own." he says, letting go of the blue blur, "Wait, Knux, no wait!" Sonic yells too late as his legs give way, falling face-first on the hardwood floors.

"Oops." Knuckles scratches the back of his head, "What are you two doing?" comes a low voice. Knuckles turns to see Shadow is back, arms crossed with a questioning look. "Hey, Shadow! I was just helping little Sonic here learn how to walk." Shadow's eyes fall, seeing Sonic groaning, sprawled out on the ground motionless. "Looks like it's going well."

"Ha, ha ha." Came a monotone muffle from the floor. Sonic turned his head facing Shadow, "Very funny, Mr. Emohog. Would somebody please help me up?" Knuckles complies, picking up the irritated blue hedgehog and placing him on the couch, "Thanks." he mumbles, "So, what did Tails have to say?"

"They are on their way back from the tunnels and will arrive later this afternoon. You will go with Tails back to the workshop for further testing when they get back."

"More tests? Great." Sonic moaned, falling to his side, "Wake me when they get here." he says, turning on his back; he wraps his hands behind his head and closes his eyes.


	9. Chapter 9 A Second Childhood

"What do you think he's dreaming about?" Knuckles softly asks, nudging Shadow. Shadow glimpses through his peripheral the other side of the couch to see Sonic still asleep, hugging a throw pillow, sucking his thumb, and mumbling something about a runaway chili dog. "No idea." getting up, he goes to the diaper bag digging for something inside. Finding what he was searching for, he disappears into the kitchen.

A moment later, he returns, holding the red pacifier now tied to the end of a string. Skillfully he ties the string around Sonic's neck and pops the pacifier in; with that done, he sits down, turning his attention back to the movie they were watching.

An hour later, Amy and Tails return from their expedition. "Hey, guys, we're back!" Amy calls, "Hey, Amy! Hi, Tails!" Knuckles greets. Sonic wakes up, "Heeeey guys." he yawns, "Everything go ok? No more weird rooms?"

"Yup! Everything went great! I think we might have found a few things that will help me make a cure for you." Tails replies happily. "That's awesome little buddy!"

"You ready to head down to the workshop?"

"Workshop?" Still a bit drowsy, it takes Sonic's mind a second to boot up, "Oh, yeah...those tests. Sure I guess so."

"Cool!" Tails proceed to walk out the door, leaving his friend behind, "Uh, Tails, wait, aren't you forgetting something?!" Sonic yells, "What? Oh, sorry." Tails smiles apologetically; he returns, twirling his two tails, and picks up Sonic by the arms. "We'll be back for dinner." Sonic calls as they fly out, "We will be back for dinner, right, Tails?"

"Don't worry, Sonic," his best bud chuckles, "We'll be back with plenty of time to fill your stomach." With that, the duo leave their friends for the rest of the afternoon.

* * *

*At the workshop*

Sonic sits on top of the workshop table again, kicking his legs a bit, waiting for Tails to begin the tests, "Ok, Sonic, the first thing I want you to do is to follow this pen with your eyes only."

"Ok, seems easy enough." Sonic does so with no problem, "Good. Now touch your nose with your index finger." again, Sonic does said task with no issue, "Now, can you...blink your left eye, twitch your right ear, and tap both your feet?" Sonic does it without missing a beat. "Excellent!" Tails quickly wrote down his progress. "Now, I'm going to ask you some questions about your history, some math problems, and current events. Answer to the best of your ability, ok?"

"No prob, bud, but I can't guarantee anything about those math problems."

"Don't worry; they are all simple." Tails chuckled, Sonic gave his famous thumbs up and a wink, signaling he was ready. "Ok, Sonic, first question; How old are you?"

"19 years old."

"What's your full name?"

"Sonic The Hedgehog."

"What's 2+2?"

"4"

"How long have you been fighting Dr. Eggman?"

"Since I was 9, so 10 years."

"What is the name of our town?"

"Hedgehog Village."

"What's 4x4?"

"16"

"When did we meet?"

"Just a few months after my first fight with Egghead."

"What's my full name?"

"Miles Tails Prower."

"Who is the current mayor?"

"E. Pluribus Fink."

"What's 16x16?" Sonic paused, a blank expression on his face, "Uhhhh...43?"

"Close 256." Sonic frowned in irritation, "That's not close." Tails ignored him, continuing with the questions. "What is Knuckles?" Sonic knew this one for sure, "He's the last echidna from Angel Island." adding the last detail, hoping to make up for his failure at that last math question. "What's your favorite food and drink?"

"Chili dogs and soda."

"What is Dr. Eggman's real name?"

"Robotnik or as I like to call him Robuttnik."

"And the last question, do you have a crush on Amy Rose?" Sonic slammed his mouth shut, cheeks puffed up, glaring at Tails, refusing to answer the trick question. "Ah, well, it was worth a shot." Tails shrugged, smirking, and wrote down his results, "Now this last test is a little different." he said, picking up a stack of papers, "This is called 'The Ink Blot Test.' I'll show you these pictures of random inkblot shapes, and you tell me what you see." Sonic scratched his head. "So, like cloud watching but with ink?"

"Sure, yeah. I guess it's kinda the same thing. Just tell me what you see; there are no wrong answers." Sonic cocked a brow at that last remark, this test seemed odd, but he shrugged it off, wanting to finish. Tails pulled up the first paper, "Ok, what do you see?"

"Looks like a palm tree." Tails nodded and picked up the next picture. "Chili dog!" Next card. "Rattle." Now it was Tails turn to cock his brow; he went to the next image, "Bee-bot." As they continued through the stack of inkblot pictures, Tails noticed something interesting. Sonic started the test seeing everyday objects and things that he knew Sonic was interested in, but as they went on, Sonic saw more and more things that were for a baby; bottles, cribs, a paci (yes, Sonic said paci without blinking), and random baby toys.

"Ok, Sonic, last picture, what do you see?" Sonic stared at the picture leaning in, narrowing his eyes, searching for something. Finally, he leaned back and said, "Eh, a sunflower, I guess?" Tails sighed and wrote down the final results. "So um...how did I do?" Sonic asks, nervously pointing his index fingers at each other.

Tails scratches the back of his head, tails twitching behind him, "Well...your memory seems to be intact, and your brain connections are working properly, so that's good." Sonic scanned his adopted little brother. He noticed Tails avoided direct eye contact, his body language conveyed hesitation, and his two tails were moving erratically.

Growing up using only sign language for most of his life, Sonic could easily read people since facial expressions and posture are half the language. He could guess pretty accurately what Tails was thinking after knowing the two-tailed fox for so long. _Tails thinks there's something is wrong; he's not telling me everything. Is he afraid that I'll get mad at him? Whatever's wrong isn't his fault...sigh, it's more my fault for getting myself in this situation in the first place._

"Tails," Sonic gently breaks the silence, putting an ungloved hand on his little brother's knee. Tails looked down at the blue hand; ears turned down, he wearily looked up at those reassuring emerald eyes. "Whatever it is, we'll work it out, you can tell me. I promise I won't freak out." Tails glances back at the floor. He wasn't sure how Sonic would take this kind of information, his brother was pretty open-minded, but this was... a little out of the ordinary. But he also knew Sonic could read him like a book, and as long as he looked like he was hiding something, Sonic wasn't going to let this go until he told him what was up.

He out a big sigh, "Sonic, you-your...it's-there's nothing wrong per se. Sonic, I know you don't like to talk about your past, but...did you...have a family or a home at any point in your life before you meet me?" Sonic flinched, quickly looking at the floor sadly. He didn't like thinking or talking about his life when he was younger. It wasn't pleasant. It was lonely. He always felt unusually bashful when the subject came up. As much as he didn't want to talk about it, Tails seemed to think it was necessary at the moment. "No," he spoke quietly, "I didn't have anyone before I meet you."

"So, you were just wandering all around by yourself?" Sonic silently nodded. This confirmed Tails' hypothesis. "Sonic, I think you are maybe beginning to experience a second childhood." Sonic's head jerked up, "A-a-what?"

"A second childhood. A period in someone's adult life when they act and think like a little kid." Sonic blinked, confused. What did his little brother just say? Did he hear him, right? "Wait a minute, wait a minute," he waved his hands, "You're saying that that machine is turning me into a kid again?!"

"Maybe, or maybe since you were turned into a baby again, your brain could be recognizing that you never got to have a childhood in the first place and is taking this opportunity to have one." Sonic stared at him, eyes as big as an owl's, shaking his head in disbelief. He knew he could act childishly at times. Amy, Shadow, and even Tails complained at times about his little games of competition, short attention span, and frequent jokes, but...this was just ridiculous! "Nononononono way. There's no way! Just because my childhood wasn't the "greatest" doesn't mean I didn't have one."

"Let me ask you this, Sonic. Have you found yourself doing things, only a little kid or toddler would do today? Such as sucking your thumb or a pacifier, playing with toys, having accidents, or having a hard time controlling your emotions in the last 24 hours?" Sonic guilty looked back to the floor; he had found himself acting childishly several times today. Playing with baby toys, having accidents (though he as much as he tried to deny it, he liked the feeling of wearing the diapers), and he remembered sucking his thumb earlier during Eggman's visit for comfort, heck he was wearing a pacifier around his neck and wanting to pop into his mouth right now.

He blushed, "I-I-I-I...um *gulp* may have done a few of those things t-today." Tails leaned over and pat his shoulder, "And that's ok. There nothing wrong with acting like a little kid."

"There's not?" Sonic usually never had any reason to doubt Tails. He was a brilliant fox, but what he just said didn't match how he knew the world worked. Acting like a baby or kid was in no way cool. Behaving so childishly in public would ruin his hero reputation.

"Yeah! There's a whole community of people out there who live this kind of lifestyle. In fact, I think this might be good for you! Let you experience something you've never had before."

"But Tails, won't this kind of thing affect my reputation as a hero? It's not exactly respectable or cool for someone of my position and rep. to act like...this." _And I get enough backlash as it is from the villagers after calling Mike just a guy._

"Well, there will be people who won't understand or agree with it, but it's not like you have to broadcast this kind of thing to the whole village or the world. Just close friends. That is, if you're comfortable with that, we can keep this just between you and me if you want to."

Sonic stared warily at Tails; this was a lot of information to take in. He wasn't sure how he felt about it right now. He felt like he needed to wait until he learned more and was comfortable with the idea before thinking about telling anyone else. Then again, he was behaving like a toddler without entirely realizing it anyway. If this continued, it probably wouldn't be long before the rest of his team and the village would start to ask questions. "Let's just keep this between us for now, Tails. This is...a lot to take in. I'm struggling just to understand it all right now. Do you think we could talk about this more later?"

"Sure thing Bro! No problem." Tails agreed with a comforting smile; he was going to support his brother through this. This was not going to be easy for the blue blur, but with Tails' help, they were a force to be reckoned with. He knew Sonic would do anything for him and had proved it time and time again. Now it was Tails' turn to show he felt the same. They were going to work this all out just like he said.


	10. Chapter 10 Just Hanging Out

"We're back!" Tails yelled as he hovered into Amy's home, dumping Sonic onto the couch next to Knuckles, "Hey guys, you're just in time. Dinners almost done." says Amy walking back from the kitchen, "Cool! What are we having tonight?" Sonic asks, always eager to eat, "Shadow's making pasta tonight."

"Shadow is cooking? This should be good," he remarks sarcastically. As Amy takes a seat next to Sonic, she notices his diaper bulging more than usual in the front and back, "Ah, Sonic?" she whispers into his ear, "Do you need a change?"

"Huh?" Sonic looks down, seeing his wet and messy diaper realizing he had again used it without noticing. Ears bent back, he blushed and covered his face. "Goddammit!" he whispered. "We'll be right back," Amy says, picking up Sonic bridal style and heads for the nursery.

"So, how did the testing go?" She asks, laying him down on the changing table that he surprisingly still fit on. Sonic was grateful for something to take his mind off the gross diaper. "Ah...it went well. Tails just asked me a bunch of questions and showed me pictures of random ink splotches."

"Oh, you mean an inkblot test?" she asks, pulling out the baby wipes, powder, and a new diaper. "Yeah, I think so. It was weird, but it was all easy to do at least...except for those 'simple' math problems he threw at me," he mumbled the last part. Amy pulled away the tapes and lifted his legs, removing the dirty diaper to begin wiping his bottom clean. "Haha, you're not the best student, are you?" she teases, "Hey, I'm no genius like Tails, but I can definitely pass a test! Besides, there's more to life than book knowledge."

"That's true. You were always more street smart than the rest of us." she finishes wiping him clean and places the new diaper under him, carefully making sure his tail poked out the hole, "I won't argue with that, but you guys each have your own strengths as well. It's what makes us such a great team and what I appreciate about you guys." He smiles as she powders him relishing its relaxing scent. She hums in agreement tugging the front making sure it's nice and snug before taping up the sides. The diapering finished, Sonic pushes himself up and thanks her. Amy smiles as she puts away the stuff and giggles slightly, "Sonic, I don't know what's gotten into you today. From how your acting and what the guys told me, you've seemed to have calmed down about this whole baby thing." her giggling makes Sonic blush, and he rubs his nose. "I-I-I-don't know? Guess I just accepted that I'm going to be like this for a little while until Tails figures out how to fix this." (No way was he about to tell her that he might be having a second childhood!)

"Well, I'm glad to hear that." She smiles warmly, "Come on, dinner should be ready now." she picks him up and carries him back to the living room, just in time to see Knuckles and Tails walking around to the couch with plates full of spaghetti with meatballs and garlic bread for everyone. "Wow! Shadow looks good enough to eat!" Sonic remarks as Amy sets him down on the floor. (The couch is only big enough to hold 3 people.)

"Asses rety ood oo!" (Tastes pretty good too!) Knuckles' muffles mouth already full of garlic bread. Shadow places another plate on the coffee table, shaking his head. "What would you guys like to drink?" he asks. "I'll have a soda." answered Tails, plopping down next to his brother, "Me two!" said Knuckles, "Water is fine with me." said Amy, "I'll have a soda too," said Sonic. Shadow nods, returning to the kitchen for the requested drinks.

The dinner was exceptionally tasty. Sonic thought it could easily rival Amy's cooking. Tails and Amy recounted their brief expedition that day, after which Knuckles and Sonic told them of their battle with Eggman, "You guys should have seen him! Shadow was all like Major emohog 'I'm going to beat you, you pathetic machine' then sent a chaos spear right through 15 Bee-bots!" Sonic imitated Shadow's voice, then the sound of a massive explosion, "It was so cool! And then Knuckles was all like, Wham! Bam! Yaw!" he punched into the air excitedly. "Yeah, I was so awesome!" Knuckles agreed. Amy giggled, "Was this before or after you turned back?" Sonic sipped his soda, "Before. I was hiding in the bag under a table at Meh Burger. Gotta say it was pretty cool watching you guys duke it out with old Baldy McNosehair. I can't wait to get back in there with you guys."

"Hmmm," Shadow nodded, finishing the last of his pasta. "Don't worry, Sonic; I'll have a cure for you soon enough." Tails assured, munching on the garlic bread. "Yeah, don't get to worked up, Sonic. Just take it easy; for now, you could use a break from constantly fighting Eggman. Think of this as a vacation!"

"Vacation or not, I have a hard time staying still, Amy, you know that." Sonic smirked, leaning back with a full stomach, and stretched, "Buuuuut, I guess...I could try and take it easy for a little while."

"Keyword 'try.'" Shadow retorted. Sonic rolled his eyes at his rival, "Well guys," Tails yawned and got up stretching, "I think I'm gonna hit the hay. Gotta long day ahead of me tomorrow, translating those files."

"Alright, buddy, don't work yourself too hard on my account." Sonic ruffled the tufts on the fox's head. "Don't worry, I'm old enough now to know my limits, and I don't want to hear any more of your nagging either." Tails says playfully, "Good night, guys."

"Night!" Everyone replied as the two-tailed fox left his friends for the night. Since Shadow cooked dinner, Amy washed the dishes while everyone made themselves comfortable around the tv. Everyone but Shadow laughed, watching Comedy Chimps antics and jokes. As it got later in the evening, Sonic squeezed himself at the end of the couch, joining his friends at some point during the show. Getting more and more tired, he leaned next to Knuckles trying his best to stay awake. He glanced at his friends in the corner of his eye, making sure no one was watching him before popping in his pacifier, thinking it would help him stay awake. Unfortunately, it had the opposite effect. Sonic fell asleep after a few minutes sucking on the pacifier.

Knuckles felt an increased weight on his left side and noticed Sonic fast asleep sucking on the pacifier tied around his neck. _Aaaaaww._ Knuckles thought. _Poor little guy's tuckered out._ Carefully, he pulled the blue blur closer cradling him in his one arm, continuing to watch the late-night show.


	11. Chapter 11 Dreaming

**Sonic was running with his arms extended behind him, feeling the resistance as he pushed against the sound barrier. He braced himself, kicking up speed. A boom reverberated as he broke the barrier. Sonic whooped in delight with a wild grin on his face.**

**Slowly a large shadow appeared over him; he looked up to see the eggmobile quickly hovering down towards him. Suddenly a laser gun popped out and began firing.**

**Sonic smiled, it wasn't often when Eggman appeared in his dreams, but it was always fun when he did. Sonic dodged the lasers, confidant he wouldn't get hit. At one point, he ran backwards, sticking his tongue out and waving his hands by his head, mocking the doctor. Eggman screamed something unintelligible, raising a fist at him. Sonic laughed and turned back around.**

**They were heading into a forest. He leaped to a tree and pushed himself back, rolling into a spin dash hitting the front of the eggmobile. The machine blew back by force, crashing into another tree before landing on the ground. Temporarily incapacitated, Eggman rolled half out of the vehicle, coughing from the smoke emanating from the engine. Sonic strolled up to the doc, hand on his hip, wagging his finger at him. "I can't believe it. *cough cough* Baby Sonic beat me." Eggman wheezed.**

**"That's right, Eggh-excuse me? I'm not a baby. I'm-"**

**"Yes. A little baby hedgehog has defeated me." the doctor moaned, pointing to the diaper. The blue blur looked down; he hadn't noticed the padding around his waist. He scoffed a little embarrassed, then laughed at what his enemy said; it was true, even while wearing a diaper Eggman still couldn't beat him. (The thought was so funny Sonic actually giggled a bit in his sleep.) With a mischievous grin, he turned around, wiggling his diapered butt in Eggman's face emphasizing his statement. Sitting down in front of his defeated enemy, he made funny faces, a rattle appeared in his gloved hand, and he began hitting Eggman's bald head and even pulled on his ridiculous mustache a bit laughing.**

**Getting quickly bored of that, he dropped the rattle and popped a pacifier in his mouth. Taking a glance behind the doctor, an idea developed in his head. Purposely he crawled over Eggman's face to get inside and check out the hover vehicle. He gazed at the flashing buttons on the control panel, wondering which one he should push first. He picks a green one. The machine jerked and sputtered, slowly floating off the ground; Sonic's eyes lit up. He'd always wanted to fly old Egghead's reliable machine. Pulling a leaver down, the vehicle hovered higher into the air, over the trees. He flipped a switch, and it lurched forward. Sonic quickly grabbed the wheel, turning it this way and that, flying through the sky. "Yaaaaaahoooooo!"**

**Glimpsing at the view from below, tops of trees flew by at an incredible pace. This was, by far, one of the most awesome dreams he'd ever had! Flying the hovercraft made him miss flying his old plane, but it was Tails' now.**

**Sonic was so busy having fun with his joy ride he forgot Eggman was lying right next to him, still recovering from his repeated hits to the head. He didn't notice the human getting up until it was too late. Eggman grabbed him by the bandana, yanking him away from the wheel, "Now I've got you, you little pest!" Sonic choked, he strangled in the human's grip, he knew he was in trouble now, "Soooniiiic!" yelled a familiar voice.**

**Both turned around to locate the noise. Sonic smiled, seeing his best bud behind them quickly catching up. "You let him go, Egghead!" Tails spun his two namesakes up to the cockpit and pulled back a fist. He hit the doc right on the nose, "Aagh!" Grabbing for his broken nose, he let Sonic fall to the forest floor, "Aaaaaaaaahhh!" Sonic screamed, flipping wildly in the air.**

**Tails dived down after him holding his hands out, "I've gotcha, I've gotcha!" he said, catching the blue hedgehog just before he crashed into the trees.** **He held his blue brother to his furry chest, one hand holding his head, the other around his padded bottom, "Don't worry, Sonic, I've got you now." he tenderly spoke into his ear. Sonic hugged his brother gratefully. "Thanks, bro."**

**_Strange something feels off?_ _Wait a minute, when did Tails get so big?_ He thought, looking his brother over, he wasn't just bigger. Tails looked like he was a few years older now. His previously bright yellow coat was more orange now; a rusty red touched the edges of his ears and nose. Little fangs poked out of his mouth, and he seemed a bit taller and leaner too. Sonic looked down at himself, still wearing his diaper and pacifier necklace hidden under the bandana. He was a little shorter than he remembered being.**

**Tails' voice snapped him out of his slight bewilderment. "Come on, little bro, let's go home. Say bye-bye to Egghead!" Tails turned around, flying in the opposite direction of where Eggman was hovering in his smoking vehicle. Sonic rested his head on his brother's shoulder and cheekily smiled, waving at the doc going down with his ship.**


	12. Chapter 12 An Eggman Plan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know the last few chapters have been short, but the next will be longer I promise!

*Meanwhile, on Eggman's island base*

* * *

Eggman typed away on his control panel as Orbot and Cubot hovered into the lab carrying his dinner tray. "Evening, Doctor!" Orbot chirped, "How did today's evil plan go?" Eggman growled, "Horrible! Sonic never showed up! It was just that bumbling Nibbles and Emohog, not even that two-tailed thing that he always hangs out with, was there! I even dragged out the fight to give that blue rat more to time show up, but he never did. It was incredibly rude!"

"Are you sure he wasn't just sick at home or perhaps never got the notice of your attack today?"

"No! I made sure he got my notice; even without it, you could see the smoke from the fires and bombs for miles! And I checked the cameras I have posted around his shack, and he wasn't home. In fact, the last footage I have of him is from yesterday morning." Eggman sighed, rubbing his temples in frustration, "Maybe he just got sick and tired of fighting with ya all the time?" Cubot said, not helping the doctor's already thin patience. "No way! Sonic is too much of a goody-two-shoes hero just to let me barge in and burn the village to the ground."

He returned to watching the recordings of today's battle. Orbot places the tray next to his master, "Well, we can worry about Sonic later after dinner." his optic lenses gaze up at the screen. "I don't understand. I thought you said Sonic wasn't there today? He's right there." Eggman recoils, "What do you mean he's right there?! I was there in person! He never showed up!"

"Yeah, he is! He's right there under that table." Cubot points to the screen. Eggman zooms in where the robot is pointing and sees a familiar-looking blue blob, "Wait a minute..." he lowly mutters. Changing from one camera feed to another, this time, he sees Knuckles stopping just in front of a Crab-bot's camera, protectively holding a blue object in his arms. Eggman takes off his glasses, furiously rubbing his eyes. "It can't be..." Putting them back on, he reverses the video and pauses, focusing on the blue object again, "But it is!" he whispers, a broad smile creeping under his mustache. He throws his head back in maniacal laughter, "Ahahahahhaha! I don't believe it, that blue pest has gotten himself turned into a drooling infant! Haha haha! This is too rich! Ooohhh, how the mighty have fallen." He wipes a tear from his eye, breathing heavily.

A few minutes later, having gotten that out of his system. He thoughtfully looks back at the picture, twitching the fuzz on top of his lips, an idea beginning to form, "Yeeeees, this is perfect. Why didn't I ever think of this before?!" Closing the footage, he pulls up a blueprint program and grabs a notepad nearby. Hunching down, he intensely scribbles a list.

"Here," he rips the paper, handing it to Orbot, "Gather this list of supplies and have Mom-bot and Metal Sonic report to me immediately." Orbot scans over the requested items,

"Uh, sir, this list of supplies seems rather odd, doesn't it?"

"Of course not! Not for my most brilliant plan ever; this time, Sonic won't be able to stand in my way. Now get going, you useless pieces of junk!" Eggman insults his minions before returning his attention to the blueprints. Orbot mechanically sighs, clueless as to what the doctor's latest most brilliant plan is. "Yes, sir. Come along, Cubot." The duo leave the doctor to formulate his plan. The door closing behind them, Eggman reaches for a bite of his evil ham.


	13. Chapter 13 Glitch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for not posting Monday, my family got a new puppy so I was on babysitting duty and then work afterward. Oh well, that just means double update today!

Sonic woke up the next morning back in his crib. (Yes, he still fits in that too.) Watching the mobile spinning over his head, he stretched, sucking away on the pacifier, thinking about his conversation with Tails last night. _Second childhood? Whoever thought that was a thing?_

Peering down, he poked at the diaper. He was surprised at how fast he had come to like the cottony padding around his bottom. _It's so weird... but so soft, and I kinda like the idea of not worrying about finding a bathroom._ Silently chuckling to himself, he pulled out the pacifier twirling it around. _And this thing... whenever I feel the least bit upset, it instantly helps me calm down; l almost want it with me all the time?_ He popped it back in, sighing through his nose in content, his thoughts wandering to when he was younger.

He didn't remember much, just aimlessly running around between villages and towns, always on the lookout for a few scraps here and there and trying to keep out of trouble. His few interactions with grown-ups hadn't been the greatest, always threatening and shooing him away, thinking he was trying to steal something from them. He didn't like to, but sometimes he did have to resort to thieving a loaf of bread here and there. He was skinny as a child from malnutrition and having an insanely fast metabolism didn't help either. That was probably why he was so still small, even though he had all the food he could eat now. Being thought of as a thief also meant none of the local children were allowed anywhere near him thinking he would be a bad influence. That is until he met Tails. That day was the happiest day of his life, finally having found a friend.

Sonic shook his head; he didn't like thinking about those days. It made him feel depressed. _Maybe, Tails is right...maybe a second childhood would be good for me. After all, this baby stuff isn't so bad. Don't knock it til ya try it, right?_ Sitting up, he looked over at the toy chest. _But doing baby stuff is sooooo uncool. Yet, maybe, I could still try some of this stuff while no one is around?_ Y _eah, I just have to do it without getting caught!_ He still felt a bit embarrassed; what if someone did catch him playing with baby toys?

Then again, who's to say someone would? He pushed the negative thoughts away and released the crib bars. Just as he crawled out, a familiar tingling sensation hit him, "Uh, oh." He needed to go. Quickly he crawled to the door for the bathroom.

Closing the door behind him for privacy, he started to pull down the diaper but paused. "Wait a minute...if I'm going to play and act like a baby, I might as well... go like a baby." He nervously looked down at the diaper, suddenly feeling very anxious. "I'm already right here in the bathroom. I don't have to use the diaper...I could just wear it. But I'm kinda curious...no, no, no! It's disgusting..." Sonic pulled his ears in frustration.

He couldn't pinpoint why; he just knew he wanted to use the padding for it's intended purpose. "Is it because of the diaper changes?" he wondered, pacing around the bathroom on his knees. "Come on, just do it, you did it just fine yesterday...well, that was on accident, and I really was a baby then." he shook his fists and head, "No! You can do this! You're Sonic The Hedgehog. Just wet your diaper. You can do this!" He felt silly having to encourage himself to go in the diaper. Nonetheless, he closed his eyes and gently pushed, but nothing came out.

He was too tense.

Taking a deep breath, he held it in for a few seconds before breathing out, "Just relax, just relax, just relax." he whispered. After a couple more deep breaths, he finally mellowed down enough to let it loose. He felt the front of his diaper grow steadily warmer and sag between his legs. A goofy smile crept on his face as he continued to relieve himself; the warm sensation around his crotch actually felt good.

A minute later, he finished and turned to the full-size mirror hanging on the door to see the damage; the front of his diaper was much bigger and saggier now. He bit his lip, blushing at his reflection; he really looked like a toddler who had just wet his diaper. Hesitantly he touched the front, feeling how warm it was. The corner of his mouth twitched; he felt weird. It was a good weird, but none the less odd. He giggled a bit at how mushy it felt.

Finished with his business, Sonic crawled back to the nursery and to play while he waited for everyone else to wake up.

Digging deeper into the toy chest this time, he found some toys he had missed yesterday: a race car set, Legos, a sailboat, an airplane, a coloring book with crayons, and some plastic dinosaurs. Pulling out the Legos, he smiled, enjoying the feeling of the warm mushy diaper as he sat down and began building.

* * *

Amy woke up half an hour later, Shadow was still gone for his daily exercises, and Knuckles was passed out on the couch. Not hearing a peep from Sonic yet, she opened the door to his room to check up on him. She saw the blue hedgehog, back turned to her, happily playing with his toys on the floor long gone in his own little world, not noticing her presence. Amy smiled in amusement; it was funny to watch the supersonic hero in a diaper playing with his toys like a little toddler. "Good Morning Sonic~" she sings.

Sonic jumps, startled, he turns to see Amy at the door watching him, "Oh, uhhh, hey!" he nervously smiles, trying to act normal, quickly hiding the airplane he had been playing with behind his back. "G-g-good morning Amy!" The pink hedgehog covered her mouth, giggling, and walked up to him, "Don't worry, Sonniku, I won't tell anyone."

"Tell anyone what? Ididn'tdoanything." he bitterly denied. "Sure, you didn't." She laughs again, bending down. Sonic slaps her hand away in alarm when she feels the front of his diaper, "H-h-h-hey! What'd you think you're doing?!"

"Calm down. I'm just checking to see if you're wet, which you are. Come here, Mr. Soggybutt, let's get you changed." She picks him up under the arms and carries him to the changing table. Sonic rests his head on her shoulder and sighs, blushing embarrassed he already got caught playing with his toys but tried to focus on the change. He was ready to get out of the now cold, wet diaper and into a new one.

* * *

Later outside of Tails' workshop*

"Come on, that's it. You're doing it!"

"J-j-just, don't let go."

"Don't worry. I won't let you go, little blue." Knuckles reassured his friend tightening his grip. Amy, Knuckles, and Shadow were taking turns helping Sonic relearn how to walk again while waiting for Tails outside. The fox had called the gang earlier that morning with good news saying that the results of Sonic's samples were done and that his automatic translator was already almost finished translating the files they had found in the tunnels.

Eager to hear the results, the gang left, soon after breakfast, for the workshop.

Impatient as ever and wanting to get back to walking and running as quickly as possible, Sonic took the time to practice while they were waiting for his little buddy. With each step, he took his legs felt a little less like jello, "Ok, Knux, I think you can let go now."

"You sure, Sonic? Your legs are still awfully wobbly." Amy asks in concern.

"Yeah, I'm sure, Ames. Go ahead, Knux." he nods.

"Alright." Knuckles hesitantly does so, taking a few steps back to give the blue blur some room to roam, making sure he was still close enough to catch him if he fell. Sonic stood there a few moments before lifting a leg and taking a step, then another, then another, slowly he stumbled to his friends with a massive grin on his face, tail wagging like crazy. "H-hey guys, look, I'm doing it! I'm walking again!" Amy cheered, clapping her hands, jumping up and down. "Alright, go blue!" Knuckles yelled, pumping his fists in the air; Shadow nodded.

Muscles still weak, Sonic's legs gave way. Quickly, Knuckles caught the blue hedgehog, "Ah, thanks." he panted, feeling unusually out of breath. "You did well, though I can't believe taking your first steps would tire you out so quickly," Shadow tilted his head to the side. "I wouldn't think so either. But believe me, Shads, that took a lot more concentration and effort than it looked." Sonic grunted; gripping the echidna's arms, he pulled himself up.

"We should totally celebrate this!" Amy said enthusiastically, "Yeah, we should! How's 'bout a game of coconut hurl?" Knuckles suggested. Sonic threw a thumbs up, "You're talking my language! Let's do it! Team Shadow and Amy vs. Team Knuckles and Sonic?" he asked.

"No, thanks. I'm still trying to get rid of a headache that boulder left me with last time. No thanks to a certain somebody." Amy gives Shadow the evil eye. He huffs, muttering something underneath his breath, "You guys can go ahead, though." she chirps.

"Alright, it's your loss. Think you can toss me hard enough to beat our last score?" Sonic asks the red echidna, "I don't think, I know!" Knuckles cracks his namesakes before grabbing Sonic. He lifts his thumb sticking his tongue out to measure the distance, then starts spinning as fast as he can go, grunting; he launches Sonic to the coconut tree. Unfortunately, Knuckles, in his eagerness, puts too much muscle into his throw and sends Sonic all the way to the top, the blue hedgehog disappearing into the coconut palms.

"Sonic!" Amy cries, running to the tree, Knuckles right behind her. "Sonic, are you ok?" she calls but gets no response, "Oh, no, I think he's hurt." Amy punches Knuckles in the shoulder. "Ouch! Hey! What was that for?"

"Idiot, you threw him too hard, and now not only is Sonic stuck up there, but he's hurt!"

"Relax, I'm sure blue's fine. I can shake him down." Knuckles assured, trying to lessen the pink one's anger. He did not want to feel the wrath of her hammer. Before he attempts to shake the hedgehog down, the leaves above rustle, a bright pink light flashes from above, followed by something blue falling. In reflex, Knuckles shoots his hands out, catching the small object. He looks into his hands to see a little blue ball of fur giggling hysterically. "H-h-hey, look at that!" He laughs, "I caught a little coconut!" Amy covers her mouth, gasping in shock. "That's not a coconut! That's Sonic!"

"What? Are you sure? It's all small, round, and fuzzy like a coconut?" He asks, tossing the tiny speedster who was enjoying this new game. "Knuckles, stop that. You're gonna drop him!" Amy scolds, grabbing the little hedgehog. Sonic whined, his game being rudely interrupted, "Are you ok, sweetie?" she asks, fussing over him, pulling his arms and legs, checking for any injuries, "I'm fine! Stop it!" he signs, batting her away. "Well, that was certainly unexpected," Shadow says, surprised as the rest of Sonic's transformation but not showing it. "Guess that gas didn't wear off after all." Amy laments.

"Guys! Guys! It's done, I- oh my gosh, what happened?" Tails yells, running out of the workshop. Amy turns around, showing Baby Sonic. "Wow! I guess I shouldn't be too surprised this happened again," he says calmly. "Why not?" Amy questions, "Come on, I'll show you guys." Tails waves for them to follow.


	14. Chapter 14 Coming Up With A Plan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Double update YAY!

"The room that Sonic found was a part of a lab testing facility. That facility and the rest of the island were hit hard by a freak hurricane over a hundred years ago and buried underground by a landslide. The door was a special isolation variety to air seal rooms that were top secret. That's what helped keep everything inside perfectly preserved until we came along." Tails pointed to some writing on his laptop, "According to this journal record. There was a project called "Restart" being done in that facility. They figured out how to turn an individual into an infant, allowing them to grow up again."

"So they like made a fountain of youth?" Amy asked, "That's only part of it. Apparently, the goal of this project was to turn top-listed criminals back into infants so they could grow up again to be proper citizens. It was going to be a revolutionary way of re-entering criminals into society. The subjects were supposed to have their memories erased when they transformed and then given to families willing to adopt them."

"Something went wrong, though." Shadow interjected, "Sonic hasn't lost any of his memories, and he keeps switching from an infant to his original age."

"Correct. You see, here in the last entry, their test subjects had the same issue. The solution used in the gas was supposed to have permanent effects, but something was off. Instead of the solution and the individual's DNA molecules working together, the solution turned unstable and started fighting with the molecules, resulting in this aging flip-flopping."

"But, there's a way to fix this, right?" Amy asked, "Look at the date of the last entry here." Tails pointed to the bottom right corner of the screen, "It was posted the day before the storm." Amy whispers, "Exactly."

"Does that mean you can't fix Sonic?" Knuckles asks, tightening his hold on the little hedgie. "Yes, I can still turn him back to his original age! All the data was saved. I just gotta gather the ingredients, figure out a way to stabilize the solution, and then reverse it!" the fox said it all like it was the simplest thing in the world. Amy, Knuckles, Sonic, and Shadow looked at Tails wide-eyed. "That... sounds complicated." Sonic signed, "Oh, it's is. But that's what makes it so exciting!" Tails turned back to the monitor, "This first thing is..."

At this point, Sonic stopped listening; there was no point as he wouldn't understand anything Tails was saying anyway. He tapped Knuckles' arms to get his attention, "Hm? What is it, little blue?" he whispered; Sonic pointed down. For once, Knuckles understood and placed him on the floor. The hoglet softly squeaked in thanks before crawling away.

Crawling out of the workshop, Sonic made his way to the beach, not wanting to stay where he would be bored out of his skull; at least out here, he could occupy himself. He stopped when he hit the wet sand; sitting down, he started making a sandcastle.

He wondered what he would do after he was back to normal. How long would this second childhood last? Just while he was stuck like this, going back and forth from baby to teenager, or would it continue after he was 19 again? If so, for how long...a few weeks, months, years? While he did want to stop changing ages so much. _Do I really want to be a teenager again? Or do I want to stay a baby?_ _What would the rest of the guys think?_ _It's kinda nice being taken care of instead of always having to do everything myself. I actually get to play and have fun! But then again, I can't run, I can't defend myself, and I know I would miss hero work...sigh._

Sonic looked up at the waves reflecting in the afternoon sun; he'd never felt so conflicted with himself. One part of him wanted to stay a baby and enjoy all the attention and things he never had before. Another part couldn't stand the thought of not running for who knows how long and didn't want to watch Eggman get beat from the sidelines. He recalled his dream last night. _Maybe I could be a really fast baby, no one would have to know, and besides, it was pretty funny and humiliating for Egghead to get beaten by a Baby Sonic._ He chuckled. _I should talk to Tails about this more; he's pretty smart in a lot of ways._

Shadow quietly walked up behind the blue fuzzball, playing in the sand, careful not to disturb him. The little hedgehog seemed to be deep in thought, absentmindedly making a crude sandcastle. Shadow watched the waves crash on the beach listening to the calming sound. "Funny how something so beautiful can be so dangerous." Sonic's ear twitched; he jumped, seeing Shadow towering above him. _How long has he been standing there?!_

"Sorry, didn't mean to startle you." Shadow glances briefly away from the view, "Are you that bad at making sandcastles?" Sonic shrugged, "Just thinking." he signs.

"Wow, who knew you were capable of thinking so deeply." the ebony hog lightly chuckles. With a small smile, Sonic rolled his eyes, knowing that Shadow was only teasing him. It was nice to see his rival had a slight sense of humor and loosen up a bit since joining the team. He sighed, gloomily kicking his legs. He wanted to run, out of nowhere, his stomach grumbles. _Hungry, dang, and we didn't bring any food along either._ Getting an idea, Sonic turns around and spots one of the coconut palms nearby. _I hear coconut milk is supposed to be pretty good. How to open it?_ He wonders, crawling up and picking one of the smaller coconuts.

Shadow's ear twitched, bearing the blue blur's stomach, he realized Sonic must be hungry. He watched, puzzled as to where the baby hedgehog was going and what he was going to do now. Shadow caught on what he wanted when Sonic attempted to open the fruit hitting it on the ground; he walked over, taking the coconut from him. Forming a chaos spear, he sliced the fruit open, giving half to the hungry hoglet. Sonic squeaked in thanks, sipping the liquid inside. It was good! Refreshing and lightly sweet. Sonic gulped down the milk; Shadow took a few sips as well, enjoying the cool drink.

The combination of a full belly and warm afternoon rays of the sun made Sonic feel tired. Finishing his milk, he dropped the husk and rubbed his eyes. Shadow, not wanting anymore, dumped the rest on the sand; he noticed Sonic yawning. "Come on, squirt," Shadow bent down, picking up the blue ball. "Time to go back." The little hedgie yawned again as Shadow carries him back to the workshop. _All that thinking and milk made me tired. Maybe I should take a...little...nap._ These are his last thoughts before he drifts to sleep in Shadow's arms.

* * *

When Shadow returns to the workshop, Amy is flying around almost in hysterics. "Oh, thank goodness!" she exhales and hurries toward the two hedgehogs. Shadow protectively covers his charge and pulls back, hissing, "Ssshhhh, he's asleep!" Amy stops and silently mouths 'sorry,' leaning to the side, she smiles, seeing her tiny blue friend cuddling Shadow's white chest fur. "Aaawwww, no fair, he likes you better!" she whispers, pouting; Shadow rolls his eyes, "He just likes my chest fluff."

"Where did you find him?"

"He was out by the beach." Amy sighs, "Oh, good!"

"Here, you take the runt now." Shadow tries to pry the little hedgehog off without waking him, but Sonic has a tight grip on Shadow's chest fur, "Aagh! I can't get him off without pulling my fur out!" he faintly yells; Amy taps her chin. "I think I may have a baby carrier back at my place. We could put him in there that way he can still be comfortable, and you won't have to hold him." she suggests; Shadow sighs, "I'd rather get him off...but fine."

* * *

A short time later, Shadow is hooked up with the carrier, Sonic comfortably nestled in the front-facing Shadow, still nuzzling his chest. Shadow rolls his neck and shoulders in relief, not that Sonic was heavy; he just wanted his arms back. "Thanks."

"No problem...Daddy Shadow." Amy giggles; she thought Shadow looked like a father getting ready to go out with their baby. Frowning, the ebony hog softly growls at her, "I'm not the little squirt's father."

"Are you sure? You two do look awfully similar..." she playfully hums. "We are in no way related in any shape or form. The only thing we have in common is being the same species." he spat. "Ok, if you say so..." Amy shrugged, turning her back on him, his fists shook in a fury. "Watch yourself, pinky. I don't have to stick around and help you with the blue baby."

"I know," Amy smiles over her shoulder, "And I appreciate it!" Shadow humphs, acknowledging her thanks but still irritated at her joking, "I'm going on a walk; we'll be back before dinner." He smashed the door closed behind him; Amy shook her head in amusement as he left.


	15. Chapter 15 Is This Family?

**A 19-year-old again, Sonic was wandering through the forest, enjoying the sounds of nature and his alone time. Birds happily sang high above, there was a nice breeze in the air, and the sun shone through the treetops.**

**Sonic breathed in the fresh air. Speed king he was, that didn't mean he always lived in the fast lane; sometimes, he wanted to slow down for a few moments and enjoy a slower pace. Putting his hands behind his head, he walked on, taking in the scenery. Sometimes he missed wandering around aimlessly, don't get him wrong, he was glad to have a place of his own and friends to come back to. Sometimes, he felt a little tied down and would feel the itch to get out and roam. During those times, he would take a long run past home and far away from the nearby villages. Sometimes he would run overnight without taking a break.**

**It was during one of these runs that he happened to meet Shadow. That day had been quite interesting. What were the chances of bumping into another hedgehog that could almost run as fast as him? Sonic had never dreamed of such a thing happening. He was thrilled to have found someone to race with that could keep up!**

**Slowly his surroundings changed. The birds singing stopped, the sunlight disappeared behind dark clouds, and the trees became more sparse and sickly looking. A shiver went up Sonic's spine, "Eugh, this place is starting to give me the creeps." He continued, hoping to find a nice part of the forest again. The sky darkened more, making the branches look like long spindly arms and fingers, reaching out to grab him. Sonic picked up the pace to a light jog. A cold breeze blew by, making the blanched trees creak and moan. He ran faster. Something scratched his arm; startled, he yelped and jumped into a full run. The fingers and arms reached further out, almost touching him; he panted, "Nonononononono!" He yells desperately, trying to escape their touch, but no matter how fast Sonic ran, the eerie appendages stayed right behind him.**

**Suddenly something grabs hold of his tail, "Aaahhhhhhh! Help somebody! Help!" Yanking his tail free, he reves up to push himself to the max to escape the nightmarish forest, just then something bumps in front of him.**

**"Ah!" He yells, as that something grabs hold of his arms, eyes shut tight, he kicks and screams to be let go. "Sonic, Sonic, calm down. It's me! Shhhhh sh sh, it's me you're ok now." A low voice speaks. Breath hitching, eyes still closed tight, Sonic feels soft fur against his face and a firm hand rubbing his back in circles. He blinks away the tears from his eyes, looking up to see a familiar-looking black and red hedgehog, "Daddy!" Sonic cries hugging him tightly, hiccuping, "D-d-daddy...I was s-so scared."**

**"I told you not to run off like that." Sonic whimpers hiding his face in Shadow's chest, "I-I-I'm sorry, I got lost."**

**"Hey, hey, hey, it's ok now." He continues to shush, pulling the small hoglet into his lap, "You're safe now." Shadow rocks him back and forth; Sonic sniffles rubbing his nose. _Wait a minute, Shadow's not my dad, and did I shrink again?_ Shadow tilts his head up, interrupting his thoughts, wiping away a few stray tears, "There. All better?" Sonic slowly nods with a small smile.**

**He looks around to see they are in an endless meadow now, wildflowers sporadically spotting the field in color. _Wow, this is beautiful!_ Glancing down at himself, he sees he was now the size of a toddler wearing socks and a diaper. He begins to wonder why he was little again.**

**"What'cha thinking about squirt?" Sonic shakes his head, forgetting what he was thinking about. "Huh? Oh, nothing, Daddy."**

**A mischievous smile forms on his face, he leaps into Shadow's chest, "Roar!" Sonic growls pushing the ebony hog down, and playfully bites and tugs his ear; Shadow grunts from the impact and laughs when Sonic plays with his ear. "What are you doing?"**

**"I've got you! Grrrrrrrawr!"**

**"Oh yeah? Not for long!" Shadow snarls, gently pushing the hedge hoglet off, "Aah! No!" Sonic shrieks rolling out of the way before Shadow grabs him; he quickly toddles away as Shadow chases after him. Panting going as fast as his stubby uncoordinated legs can carry him, Sonic keeps up the chase up to the top of a hill. Hitting the top, he stops for a second to catch his breath. Taking a glance behind, he sees Shadow quickly coming closer. Just as he's about to make a run for it again, Sonic trips over his own feet and rolls down the steep hill.**

**He instinctively curls into a ball to protect himself rolling down until he stops bumping into something soft. Uncurling, he giggles like mad kicking his legs in the air clutching his tummy, "Well, it sounds like someone is having fun." Sounds a female voice, "Huh?" He asks, opening his eyes to see a colossal sunflower bending down in his face glowing in the afternoon sun.**

**"Wow!" he gasps, reaching up and touching its soft petals, "You like it?" the female voice asks. Sonic sits up, searching for the origin of the voice, "Over here, silly." it giggles. He turns to see a pink hedgehog with short cut quills wearing a yellow summer dress sitting in the field of sunflowers. _Amy?_ He thinks, tilting his head.**

**"Are you having fun?" she repeats. He shyly nods. She giggles again, turning her attention to something in her lap. Curious, Sonic crawls over and sees her making a crown of sunflowers. "You made that?" He asks wide-eyed, "Yup, would you like to try it on?" she asks in a motherly tone, lifting it for him to see, "Yeah!" she sets the crown atop his head, minding his tiny ears. Though the crown is a bit too big, one side falls, hitting his left eye, "Hehe, thanks, Mommy!"**

**"Your welcome, my little blueberry." Sonic tries to adjust his crown, but it ends up covering his other eye, "I think this might fit me better." Shadow suddenly appears, taking the flower crown and setting it on his head, "How do I look?"**

**"Like a king, Daddy!"**

**"A king, am I? Then you must be my little prince, or..." he fake gasps and pulls out an imaginary sword thrusting it in the air, "Are you a terrible dragon holding this princess hostage?!"**

**"I'm not a bad dwagon; you're a bad king, and I pwotect Mommy!" Sonic stands up, putting on his most fearsome face, roaring, "Oh no! The dragon is gonna get me!" Sonic jumps onto Shadow's legs growling and roaring fiercely. Shadow yells and falls slowly to the ground putting an arm around his head and moans, pretending to take his last breath, thus ending his reign.**

**Sonic crawls up, sitting on top of Shadow's chest, poking his face checking to see if he was dead. Shadow doesn't move a muscle. Suddenly he leaps up, grabbing Sonic under his arms, lifting him high, "Rarrrr, I got him!" In surprise, Sonic squeaks and laughs as Shadow swings him around, his heart swelling inside his tan chest. Shadow and Amy laugh along with him. _Is this what it feels like to have a family?_ He wonders as everything fades.**


	16. Chapter 16 The Cave

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Small adjustment to the posting schedule, Mondays aren't working out right now so I'm changing the posting days to Wed, Fri, and Sun. Now back to our regularly scheduled program!*

Shadow entered his cave, walking past the remains of a fire and his few possessions that surrounded the campsite and further into the depths of darkness. Despite hedgehogs having poor eyesight, Shadow didn't need any light to guide him here. He had explored these caves countless times over the decades and knew all the ins and outs of the pathways like the back of his hand.

It was relatively silent besides the sound of water dripping down from the ceiling in the cave until Sonic whimpered in his sleep, shivering from the cold underground air and squeaking in distress. Shadow keeping his eyes on the non-existent path, gently pushed the hoglet closer to his chest in the carrier, petting his soft quills. The hoglet's whimpering ceases as he purrs, listening to the comforting beat of Shadow's heart, calming down from the nightmare.

Smiling, Shadow advanced down the path slowly, one hand always on the walls to gauge where he was, making sure not to slip on the wet and uneven floor. Chaos knows he didn't want to fall into a crater or off the edge of one of the many sudden drop-offs with his precious cargo in tow.

* * *

45 minutes later, he felt the baby hedgehog stirring underneath his hand, ear twitching to a high pitched yawn. "Aba ba sassa?" Sonic baby babbled in confusion. "We are deep in the caverns of my cave," Shadow answers guessing he was asking where they were now. "Ahhh," Sonic says in understanding.

He looks around, wondering how the ebony hog can walk around this dark place without tripping or bumping into the wall. He can't even see the front of his nose. Turning his head, he sees a faint twinkling light up ahead, growing bigger as they get closer.

Sonic's awes in amazement, eyes sparkling in wonder as they enter a large room. All around the cave walls are covered in tiny colorful gems shining brightly, lighting up the room in a dazzling array of colors. Water dripping around the huge stalactites and stalagmites shimmer, almost looking like a rainbow painted them. A crystal clear pool of water resides in the midst of it, all acting as a see-through mirror, making the ceiling feel higher up than it already was.

The environment is so surreal Sonic feels like he's on another planet. He's never seen anything like it before. "I come down here when I feel like I need to escape for a while." says Shadow walking further into the room, "I can see why you like to come here." Sonic signs. "Yes, not only is it beautiful; it's also quite peaceful down here. Untouched, unspoiled, unknown. I found this room just a few years ago while wandering these caverns. No one else seems to know this place exists, not even the doctor. I'm probably the first person to have explored and discovered this place."

A cold stray drop lands on his blue face; he shakes his head and pulls himself closer to Shadow's warm body, shivering. "Why did you bring me here?" Sonic questions, "Honestly, I was hoping you would have still been asleep when we passed by." Shadow covers Sonic's small head and bends down, exiting the magical room through a small opening entering another dark passageway, "Going through that room is the only way that leads to what I really wanted to show you." he straightens as the low ceiling grows in height.

A few moments of silence pass by before Sonic looks back again, feeling the temperature steady grow warmer; he soon spots another beam of light shining through the dark tunnel. Shadow turns him facing forward in the carrier to show him the sight better, after blinking a few times to adjust to the daylight, Sonic gasps; they were standing on a hidden ledge inside Shadow Canyon.

"We-we-we're at the Canyon! How did we end up here?"

"I used my personal shortcut."

 _So that's how he was able to beat me during our last race!_ Sonic figures smirking, "Wow! This is some shortcut you've got, Shads. Mind if I use it every once in a while?"

"If you can use it without getting lost." Shadow smirks in return, "I'm sure I can figure my way out." Sonic smiles. After a moment, Shadow slowly bends down, getting into a sprinting position, Sonic realizing what he's about to do, grins wider and prepares himself. _3...2...1..._ Shadow blasts off the ledge like a bullet, skating at high speeds. The little blue blur shrieks with delight loving the feel of the wind around him; even though he's only been a baby for two days, he'd missed this feeling—wind whipping against his quills, shapes, and colors blurring by. There was nothing that came close to this kind of experience. "Get ready!" Shadow yells, pushing himself faster to hit past the speed of sound.

Sonic feels the resistance; any second now, and they'll hit the target. A massive boom thunders behind them; Sonic squeals and giggles with glee, though he can't see it. Shadow is also smiling with a wild look in his eyes, loving the thrill of a runner's high. After a few miles, Shadow begins to slow down, running back to Amy Rose's home, just in time for dinner.


	17. Chapter 17 Babyhood

The next few days pass without much change. Amy and Shadow take turns taking care of Sonic, with Knuckles helping out where he can. The team quickly figures out Sonic's transformations are not random but happen every 24 hrs and precisely at the hour he first turned into a baby.

Tails comes over and visits when he needs to take a break and chats with his brother checking to see what he's up to and how he's holding up with the transformations. Sometimes they have to use sign language if Sonic's lost his ability to talk again. During one of these visits, he spends a few hours having a private and semi-embarrassing (at least to Sonic) discussion about this whole second childhood thing. Sonic asks if there's a possibility it will continue after he's back to normal, and Tails explains to him about ABDL.

"I've read some studies that say some people engage in the lifestyle to help deal with stress and traumatic life events."

"Traumatic life events?" Sonic asks, scratching his head, not understanding how the two are in any way related. "Yeah, like...parts of your life that we're exceptionally distressing. Like someone you love dying, a serious illness, prolonged isolation like you've experienced, even our battles with Eggman could be considered traumatizing." Tails explains it as simply as he can. Sonic shook his head, "Really? That stuff is traumatic?"

"Well, it depends on the individual. What may be traumatic for one person may not be for another."

"So you think because I was...alone for such a long time and because of my constant fights with Eggman, I'm now seeking comfort from all this...Little Adult Baby stuff?"

"That would be my best guess." Tails shugs. Sonic tugs on the ends of his gloves, unsure what to think. This ABDL thing was peculiar despite him already engaging in some of the mentioned behaviors such as age play, going into a little space, playing with baby toys, and wearing and using the diapers. All of the evidence pointed to him being a Little, but could he really call himself that? _Maybe I should open myself up more to the idea._ Sonic smirked nervously, rubbing his nose. "H-How did you find out about this kind of stuff? I'm older than you and have never heard about it before?"

"You wouldn't believe what you can find out about on the internet. I've come across lots of weird stuff on some of the things I research about. Believe me, this is nothing compared to some of the things I've stumbled upon." a light chill runs through Tails. He wouldn't be surprised if he were on a government's watch list with all of his web searches on weapons and next-level high tech, not to mention the stuff he makes on his own.

After their discussion, Sonic decides to accept his second childhood fully and tries to take advantage of it. He was still hesitant about calling himself an ABDL or a Little as he felt like he needed to explore his feelings about the matter more and figure out his age range when he goes into his little space for age play.

To make things less embarrassing in the meantime, he asks Tails to explain to Shadow, Amy, and Knuckles that Sonic's increasing baby-like behavior is a side effect of the transformations, which isn't a total lie. He really can't control himself much as a baby; he has more control as an adult but pretends he doesn't. Much to Sonic's relief, they don't question it further and even decide to refrain from taking him anywhere near the village to save his dignity and reputation.

Free of embarrassment, Sonic lets himself dive deep into his little space allowing his imagination to run free for the first time. Knuckles even joins him during playtime, making it all the more fun, riding on the echidna like a horse or motorcycle, coloring, hide and seek, and playing 'catch the little coconut' (Sonic is the coconut) when Amy isn't around or looking. He doesn't even attempt to use the potty when he turns back to an adult for the brief 24 hrs.

He was thoroughly enjoying his newfound babyhood. It was so therapeutic just to play.

* * *

Sonic was sitting on the carpet in the nursery, making vrooming noises while pushing his toy car, pretending to race through a perilous obstacle course he'd rigged up around the nursery; he pauses when he hears someone calling his name. "Sonic, you've been inside the house quite a bit these last few days. Why don't you help me out with my garden? Get outside for a little bit." Amy asks, lifting a small basket of garden tools. He rubs his chin in thought. "I guess it would be nice to go out for a bit. Sure!" Sonic holds his arms up, ready for her to carry him since he's still struggling with walking. Adjusting the basket, Amy picks him up under the arms, one hand under his diaper, the other secure on his back. He wraps his arms around her neck to help make it easier for her to carry him.

The two head out a few yards behind the pink hedgehog's home to her decently sized garden, filled with various fruits and vegetables, a few flowers planted here and there to help keep certain pests away.

Picking a spot, she sets him down with the basket. "So, is this place the secret to all of your tasty cooking?" Sonic asks, poking one of the berry bushes; Amy smiles at the compliment, "Yup! Most everything I make comes from right here."

"It's a good thing Shadow doesn't have one; otherwise, he'd steal your trophy for best chef."

"No way! He's good but not that good."

"I don't know that chocolate cake last night almost beat your recipe." he poked his tongue out at her teasing. "Well, guess I'll just have to up my baking game..." Amy pulled on her gardening gloves with a meditative expression, "Perhaps, I should make some Banana's Foster tonight with homemade vanilla ice cream." Sonic's eyes widened, mouth-watering up, "Yes, yes, yes! You should totally make that!" he bounced. "Ooooor maaaaaybe, I should make a Baked Alaska. Lots of fire and flare with that dish." she tapped her chin, pretending she might change her mind. Looking in the corner of her eyes, she could see Sonic slumped over at the mention of a different dish. She held in her laughter; it was funny to watch her blue friend get so childishly excited over just the mention of food, let alone his favorite foods. "Nonono!" he whined, "Do the Foster that will really blow Shads out of the water!"

"Hmm, if you say so...ok~."

"Yes!" Sonic fist pumped in victory and looked into the distance with dreamy eyes, thinking about the desert; she giggled at his silliness. "Ok, ok. Now let's get back to working on the garden." He jerked back to reality. "Oh, right! So uh, what do we need to do?"

"I'm going to harvest these tomatoes and blackberries right here, and you can pull out these weeds." she pointed to a few wire looking green leaves poking out of the soil. Sonic winked and gave her a thumbs-up starting on his chore, removing the intruders hiding under the berry bushes. Amy picked the ripe blackberries, gently laying them in a cloth in the basket protected from her pointy garden tools. A few minutes later, her communicator's alarm went off; she checked the time to see it was exactly the hour that Sonic would start his transformation. She peeked around the bush just in time to see Sonic beginning to curl over, shaking and breathing heavily; one second later, a pink light flashed. Amy blinked and saw a baby hedgehog in place of the fully grown one.

The transformations never looked pleasant, yet thankfully they were brief, and Sonic recovered quickly, "Are you ok?" she asked to make sure he was alright. Sonic shook away his slight nausea. Looking up, he gave her another thumbs up with a small smile. "Ok. You can have a few blackberries if you want when you're done, sweetie."

He squeaked in acknowledgment and returned to his weeding. The work was a little tricky and took longer in his now tiny and uncoordinated body, but his determination remained the same to finish the job; a few minutes later, he picked the last weed clapping the dirt from off his hands. _A job well done, now time for a reward._ He thought, crawling over to the basket half full of freshly picked berries. As he leaned into the basket, his ears perk up. Hearing a snap, he twisted around to locate the sound and saw something in the row next to him.

Curiosity taking over, Sonic abandoned the basket of berries to identify the object. Upon closer inspection, he saw it was a yellow metal toy duck quaking and shuffling around. "Ah!" he smiled, crawling towards the fun looking toy. It waddled away as he got closer; _hey, where are you going?_ He crawled after the toy duck, shuffling away, leaving the garden, and heading to the beach.

"Come back, I just wanna play with you!" he babbled, switching from a crawl to a toddle. Entering the beach, the mechanical duck stopped. Waddling in place, it continued to quack, spinning around and flapping its wings. Sonic hurried to catch it while it turned in place. "Gottcha!" he yelled in triumph, grabbing its neck.

Suddenly the duck's eyes lit up green; _What the?_ The little hedgehog was abruptly pushed and tumbled onto his back. The duck flew up above, sounding a single loud "QUACK!" Sonic saw its undercarriage open, dropping something over his head. He instinctively rolled into a ball, expecting to be squished, but nothing happened. Unrolling a bit, he saw he was inside a clear egg-shaped capsule. _Eggman!_ He thought, angrily pounding his little fists on the capsule.

"Sonic!" Amy runs to him in panic. He smiles, seeing her come to his rescue, but his smile fades when she abruptly stops in her tracks with a look of horror on her face. Puzzled, Sonic looks behind him to see a familiar gleaming silhouette towering over the capsule. _Metal!_

"Tails, Knuckles, Shadow! Emergency! Eggman is capturing Sonic!" Amy yells into her communicator, keeping her eyes on Sonic's metal duplicate. "So what? Can't you take care of the runt?" Shadow gripes, on the other end, "Metal Sonic's got him!" she replies angrily, "Shit! Where are you?"

"At the beach just outside my house." Amy barely finishes her sentence before Shadow appears next to her just in time to see Metal picking up the transparent egg holding Sonic inside and lifting off.

"Oh no, you don't." the ebony hog says under breath and teleports behind Metal, swift kicking him in the back of the head. Metal lurches forward but keeps his grip on the egg capsule, Sonic rolling onto his stomach inside. Red optic lenses glaring Metal turns and blocks a punch. " **Careful now. We don't want to hurt the baby."** he beeps. Growling Shadow throws another punch to his metallic head, hitting the target. Metal kicks a leg up as he's head is thrown back, hitting Shadow in the gut; as he spins upside down, he lands another kick in the organic hog's face. Shadow flips in the air and shoots himself back at the robot. Metal lifts the egg capsule in front of him as a shield. Sonic shrieks and covers himself for impact. With his lightning-fast reflexes, Shadow turns just before hitting the egg. "Agh! Coward!" He yells, Metal tsks condescendingly, **"Now now, you almost hit the baby."**

Sonic and Amy watch helplessly as Shadow repeatedly tries to strike Metal without hitting the capsule, dive-bombing, and punching at every opening he can find. He doesn't use any chaos spears in fear of accidentally hitting the container, holding the blue blur. Metal uses the capsule to his advantage, using it as a shield and making his moves while Shadow is open, all the while pushing them further out over the water. Finally, Knuckles and Tails show up alongside Amy, "What's going on?!"

"Metal's got Sonic and is using him as a shield, so Shadow can't get to him! Amy cries in sorrow. "Tails, what do we do?"

"You guys stay here; I'll help Shadow!" Just as the fox launches into the air, Metal, bored of the organic's useless attempts to capture his charge, lifts one arm changing it into a laser cannon, and shots Shadow in the split second he is distracted, hitting the ebony hog square in the chest. "Dada!" Sonic screams as Shadow's eyes roll back, floating in the air for a second before he falls into the dark waters below.

Tails quickly dives in without a second thought for the unconscious hog. "Dada? Dada!" Sonic cries slamming his hands on the capsule; he watches for any sign of Tails and Shadow reemerging below the deep blue liquid. Several seconds pass by, with neither resurfaced. Sonic curls in himself, whimpering, eyes watering, fearing the worst for his two friends.

Satisfied, his attacker is down for the count. Metal beeps a message to his master that he's finished with the mission, then turns on his boosters and flies back to the doctor's island home with the sobbing baby hedgehog.


	18. Chapter 18 Kidnapped

Eggman turns away from the monitors as Metal Sonic hovers in through the sliding doors with his prize. "Well done, Metal!" Eggman claps, praising his most prized creation, Orbot, and Cubot follow their master's lead and roll their optic sensors while Mom-bot claps enthusiastically. Metal beeps happily, holding out the egg capsule to his master. The doctor removes a remote from his jacket pocket, clicking a button, the top of the capsule cracks open, and he reaches inside, grabbing the still crying baby hedgehog by the scruff.

Orbot and Cubot immediately cover where their ears would be from Sonic's crying, "Aagh! What's that noise?" Cubot complains. "Metal, what on Mobious did you do to him?" Eggman yells, "When I asked you to capture him, I didn't mean for you to traumatize him in the process!" Metal stands there and beeps in indifference.

"Turn him off!" Cubot screams in desperation. "My audio receptors can't take much more of this." Orbot whines, "I'm trying!" Eggman yells, bouncing Sonic up and down in his arms, trying to get the little hedgie to calm down. Sonic just ends up crying harder, even though he knows Shadow will be ok, (after all, it's hard to keep the Ultimate Life-form down), he can't stop crying. "There's gotta be a mute button somewhere!" Cubot screams again over the cries, "That's it!" Eggman spots the red pacifier still around Sonic's neck and pops it in. Sonic immediately stops crying, sniffing as he sucks furiously on his paci, tears still falling. "Oh, my poor grandbaby!" Mom-bot cooes quickly, taking the little hoglet from Eggman's arms and cradles him.

"There there now, baby, Nana's got you." Sonic whimpers fidgeting in her cold metal arms. "Agh, Mom-bot, give him to me!" Eggman grabs the blue blur back and places him over his shoulder, patting his back. Orbot and Cubot remove their hands from their heads, sighing in relief. "Wow, doc; you fixed him!" Cubot cheered; Orbot agrees with his lesser counterpart. "Yes! how did you know that would work?"

"Fixed him? He's not a useless bucket of bolts like you two are. Thank Chaos." he whispers the last part, "He was just upset and needed comfort. Anyone could have figured it out. Especially a brilliant doctor such as myself! " Eggman boasted as he continued to rub Sonic's back, who was quietly still sucking his paci. _This is weird. Why is he trying to comfort me?_ Sonic looked at Eggman cocking his head in confusion as Eggman smiled at him. "There all better?" he asked. Sonic continued to stare at him blankly, "I'll take that as a yes. We can start the bonding process now." Orbot scratches his round head. "Bonding?" he inquires, "Yes, you nitwit! If I'm going to have Sonic as an heir, I need him to be attached as soon as possible, so we don't have any problems of anarchy down the road."

_Heir? Bonding? Is that why Egghead's not torturing or killing me off? Is he trying to make me his son? He must think I lost my memory and am now a real baby! I better watch myself, and keep this 'real baby' act up, don't wanna let on that I still have my memories. There's no way I can stop him from erasing them if he finds out._

"Oooooh, please let me hold my grandbaby just for a little bit Eggypoo!" Mom-bot begged, _Eggypoo?!_ Sonic snickered, struggling to hold himself back from laughing out loud. He was totally going to use that nickname later.

"You can hold him later, Mom-bot, right now..." Eggman stuck his nose in Sonic's fur, tickling him slightly, "Whew! I need to get this little rascal cleaned up. He smells like he's been rolling around in manure." Eggman walked out of the lab down through the maze of hallways in his base.

 _Hey! I don't stink! Wait. Focus, Sonic, you gotta figure out some way to get out of here. Shadow is down and depending on how injured he is. There's no telling when I'll be rescued. I'd rather not be around Eggman when I turn back tomorrow morning. This is embarrassing enough._ Sonic contemplated ways to escape, scanning for vents, exits, or anyplace he could hide as they walked down the hallways.

Eventually, they stopped at a door, sensing their presence, it slid open, and Eggman walked into the room. Sonic turned around and saw they were in a nursery, this one much bigger and fancier than the one at Amy's. Soft monotone colors filled the room with smiling cartoon robots on the walls _,_ the carpet (the only carpeted room on base) was pale blue, and the mobile had mini versions of some of the robots he had fought in the past, hanging over a polished white crib. Eggman walked to the changing table and strapped Sonic down. _H-hold on, wait a minute! I don't wanna be changed by you!_ Sonic wiggled, his embarrassment meter skyrocketing. No way was he going to be changed by his enemy.

"Grrr, you wanna fight, do ya?" Eggman struggled to try to grab hold of the blue blur legs to begin the undiapering. To his dismay, Sonic was quickly overpowered by the human. "Hahaha! Gotcha!" Eggman held him up by the ankles and untapped the wet diaper; rolling it up, he threw it away and dried the hedgie's crotch. Sonic couldn't help but squirm and squeak in alarm as he was wiped down there, blushing. He grimaced, mortified at what his most hated enemy had just done to him. "Now, you stay right here. I'll be back in a minute." Eggman left the naked hoglet on the table, disappearing from his eyesight. _Where are you going? You're not done yet! Come back, get me outta here!_ Sonic struggled to unlock the strap but was too weak to release the button. _Aaaag! Curse this baby body!_

Unable to escape, he twitches his ears listening for any indication of what the egg-shaped doctor was doing, faintly he hears something rumbling. It stopped after a minute; then he hears footsteps coming back into the room, "Alright, now you ready?" Eggman asks, his jacket removed, and sleeves rolled up; he unstrapped the naked hedgie carrying him to the room connected to the nursery. _Ready for what?_ Sonic wondered, twisting himself away from the doctor. He saw they were in the bathroom; light steam fogged up the mirror. _Oh no!_ His ears dropped, eyes widened, and tail tucked between his legs in dread when he saw the reflection of a bathtub filled with a few inches of warm water. "Ah, Ah!" He squirmed desperately trying to get out of Eggman's hold, not wanting to get in the water, "Hold still, you little pest!" Eggman pinched the scruff of Sonic's neck, making him go limp, temporarily paralyzed. His green eyes darted wildly, trying to figure out what just happened. "There, now just calm down so I can get you cleaned up."

Unable to move, Sonic whimpered as he was lowered into a baby bath seat; Eggman kept a hold of his scruff and grabbed a cup of water. He dumped it over the hedgie's head, then squirted baby soap on his quills; letting go of his scruff, he started to scrub the speedster's body. Sonic covered his eyes to keep the soap out of them, shaking in fear and still whimpering.

It was surprising how gentle Eggman was with him, not scrubbing too hard or pulling his limbs like a ragdoll.

The large man hummed a light tune as he worked the soap throughout the little hedge hoglet's fur and quills making sure to get behind the ears. He chuckled when Sonic giggled as he hit his prime tickle spots, "Seems water is not your only weakness." The doctor softly smiled, finished cleaning the dirt and sand out of his blue fur, he dumped another cup of water, rinsing out the soap bubbles, Sonic now smelling like blueberries, covered his eyes again, and shook the excess water off his fur. "How about a little bit of playtime?" Eggman picked up a rubber ducky from the corner and placed it in front of him. Sonic turned up his nose at the toy, not interested in playing right now, and pushed it away. "Come on now, Sonic, play with the ducky. It's fun here, see?" The doctor picked up the duck again and made quaking sounds bopping the toy all over his damp muzzle.

Sonic couldn't help but chuckle at the funny noises the doctor made. He's never heard or seen Eggman do something this silly before, he turned his head side to side trying to avoid the rubber duck, but the human kept pestering him to play with the bath toy. _All right, all right, I give!_ _Gimmie that thing!_ Taking the toy duck, he sent the doctor a quick glare before playing and splashing as requested.

Suddenly, a flash blinds them, both black spots floating in their eyes, "Aaaawww! Isn't that just precious, my two men having fun in the tub!" Mom-bot smiled behind her camera. "Mom-bot!" Eggman blushed. "What are you doing?"

"Well, since you won't let me anywhere near my new baby grandson, I thought I would start capturing some memories. And I think this may be my favorite picture!" The human growled at his overly loving parental robot, mumbling to himself, "Why did I have to program you to be so motherly?" His moment of regret faded, a smile twisting on the edge of his mustache as he thought about what the robot just said. "Hhmmm, yes, memories...I'll need something to blackmail the little pest with later when he grows up. Gotta embarrass him somehow when he starts to date."

If he wasn't blushing before, Sonic indeed was now. Talk about humiliating, a picture of him stark naked, being bathed by his arch-enemy while playing with a rubber ducky.

Ignoring the motherly robot, Eggman bends over and turns a little machine on. It quietly hums, and colorful bubbles began to float out of the hole in the machine. Sonic watched as one bubble landed on his tiny black nose. He cooed, looking at his distorted reflection before it suddenly popped; he laughed and clapped his hands. Actually starting to enjoy the bath, he poked more bubbles with his fingers and nose; Eggman even joined in, popping the ones he missed. Mom-bot snuck more pictures of the adorable scene.

A few minutes of playtime later, Eggman turns off the bubble machine and unplugs the drain, "Alright, Sonic, bath time is over." The little hedgehog was slightly disappointed their game was over but didn't complain as he was ready to get out. Eggman wrapped a soft white towel around and pulled him out, resting him against his shoulder. The blue blur shook from the temperature change, "Goodness, Sonic, your shivering up a storm. Let's get you warmed up before you catch your death." Placing the wet fuzz ball on the countertop, he briskly rubbed the excess water off and pulled out a hairdryer to finish.

Shivering, Sonic closed his eyes and waited. He began to relax as the heat blew from the hairdryer; it felt terrific. His shivering ceased as his fur dried, tail wagging with pleasure. When his fur was sufficiently dry, the doctor turned off the dryer, chuckling. Cocking a brow, Sonic wondered what was so funny this time; another flash blinded him, and he heard Mom-bot awe and say something about how cute he looked.

Eggman coughed, trying to stop laughing as he pulled out a brush. "Heh heh-Hold still so I can make you not look like a cotton ball anymore." he starts to brush Sonic's quills and fur. A shiver ran up Sonic's spine, the brush making contact combing down his coat and spines; he melted, eyes half-lidded purring in bliss. He'd never been brushed before, let alone groomed. _I definitely gotta get myself one of these._ Once he looked like a hedgehog again and not like a blue ball of fluff anymore, Eggman put away the brush and picked him up, holding the naked hoglet close. They returned to the changing table in the nursery.

He laid Sonic back on the table and strapped him in. Opening a drawer, he pulled out baby powder and a fresh diaper. This one actually had a racecar design on it. _I didn't know diapers came with patterns?!_ Sonic eyed the diaper with interest; as he was placed inside the soft padding. He closed his eyes, smiling and blushed to the feeling of the diaper under his bottom as the powder was applied. His previous humiliation nothing more than a distant memory as he listened to Eggman humming, tugging the front of the diaper, making sure it was snug, and closed the tapes. "See...that wasn't so bad now, was it?" Sonic looked away, acting like he didn't understand.

His stomach growled loudly, "Perfect! Feeding time~" Eggman sang; picking up the blue blur, he walked to a small fridge filled with already made bottles of milk. He warmed up the bottle in the microwave sitting next to it and tested the milk to make sure it wasn't too hot before sitting down in a futuristic-looking rocking chair; he adjusted his hold, cradling the hedgie in one arm. (which wasn't very hard to do given how small Sonic was)

The doctor offered him the bottle, "Drink up, Sonic. Then it's naptime." he softly encouraged. Sonic looked at the bottle then at Eggman. He was hungry and didn't want to make his compromising situation worse; Sonic accepted the milk. He smiled, enjoying the warm creaminess going down his throat and filling his belly. Looking up at Eggman, again, who was strangely still smiling at him, he wondered how this all related to bonding as he sucked. _This is so weird. If I were my usual adult self, we'd be trying to beat each other to a pulp. Now, as a baby, he's comforting and caring for me like I'm his real son. Even though it's kinda creepy, I gotta say I like this side of old Eggface. Maybe he wouldn't be so bad as a Dad?_ Sonic wondered about the possibility as he drank, only able to finish half the bottle before he felt full.

Eggman pulled him up over his shoulder when he finished and firmly patted his back; Sonic let out a cute burp and blushed again. He had become the master of that during the last week. "Mom-bot play track number 670059."

"Yes, dear." Mom-bot's eyes blinked a few times, and her mustache switched out for a set of speakers, a soft lullaby played. Eggman gently rocked the little hedgie rubbing his back, humming along with the tune; Sonic let out a high-pitched yawn and rubbed his eyes. _Man, Egghead sure knows how to take care of a baby. I'm so sleepy. He should have gone into childcare instead of villainy._ He mused, thumb hovering by his mouth. Eggman spotting the sign put the pacifier in his mouth. Sonic sucked away in content, feeling surprisingly comfortable resting on his enemy's broad shoulders with a warm and full belly, fur nice and soft; he felt a wave of babyishness wash over him. He nuzzled into the crook of Eggman's neck, falling fast asleep to the lullaby.

Eggman rocked as he listened to the slow breathing of the sleeping hoglet. He'd never imagined caring for his old arch-enemy this way. Usually, his daydreams of "taking care of Sonic" involved more... torturous methods. But he had to admit this was a much better way to rid himself of the annoying furball. _Why beat them when you can just turn them into a mindless infant and raise them to bow to your every will? Yes, it takes a lot of work, but the rewards more than make up for it._ He peeked over his shoulder to see the peaceful face of the baby hedgehog. _That and he is more adorable and tolerable this way..._ Mom-bot startled him out of his thoughts, flashing another picture. He glared at her briefly. _Well, I guess that's enough bonding time for now._ Slowly he got up and placed the hedgehog in his crib, covering him up in a blanket to keep warm (with Eggman's logo on it, of course ), turning on the mobile and the lights off except for one lone nightlight. Eggman and Mom-bot left his new son to nap.


	19. Chapter 19 Daddy Eggman

A few hours later, Sonic woke up in his new crib, yawning. He stretched and sat up, looking over the nursery again. _There must be some way to get out of here...this nursery is a lot fancier, but the one at home is cozier, and you can't beat that._ He didn't see a latch on this crib or anything else around the bars that would indicate he could get out on his own. The only thing inside was the blanket, pillow, and what looked like two buttons on the headboard, one round and red, the other square and yellow. Shrugging, unsure what else to do, he presses both buttons.

Nothing happened.

"Great," he grumbled, "Guess I'll have to wai-" just then, Orbot and Cubot floated in, "You called young master?" Orbot asked. _Oh, so that's what those buttons do!_ Sonic blinked in surprise. "Um, can you get me out of here?" he babbled. Cubot dumbly stares at him then at his red partner for guidance, "Uuuhhh, what did he say, Orbot?" The round robot rolled his eyes, putting his hands on his hips. "He didn't say anything; that was just baby nonsense. He can't speak yet. Frankly, I'm surprised he figured out to push the buttons to call us."

"Actually, I thought it would open the bars. I didn't know it would call you two idiots instead." Sonic scowled _._ Suddenly an idea popped into his head. _Buuuut, you may be just the two idiots I need._ Using his biggest puppy dog eyes, he raised his arms, hoping they understood this time that he wanted out. To his relief, Orbot caught on and lifted him out of the crib. "Ok, your out. Now, what do you want?" Sonic pointed to the ground, Orbot set him down, and he instantly speeds for the door. _Yes, yes, yes!_ Sonic thought as the door slid open; he was on his way out to freedom and his friends. As he was about the exit the room, he felt himself unexpectedly lifted off the ground, "Hold on there, little Mr., where do you think you're going? You can't leave the nursery without your Daddy's permission." Orbot carried the surprised hedgie back into the nursery.

 _No, no, no!_ Sonic fussed as he was placed on a play-mat. "Here, play with this." Orbot offered a block, pouting Sonic threw the block at the robot, hitting him on the face, and made another attempt to escape. "Wait a minute, ya little scamp." Cubot caught him before he reached the door. Sonic whined, flailing in the robot's grasp, frustrated his attempts of escape we're foiled, his hopes of freedom that was so close within reach were being dashed to pieces by the two robots. He inhaled as much air as he could hold, cheeks puffing out to their limit, and screamed, kicking and hitting poor Cubot, who was still holding the hoglet.

Orbot quickly covered his audio receptors, "Oh dear, not this again!"

"Ow, ow ow! W-w-what ow, stop it! Do we do?!"

"Wait, I think I remember, quickly, the pacifier!"

"The what?"

"The paci-oh, never mind you nitwit, I'll do it!" Orbot quickly pushed the pacifier into the hedgehog's mouth; Sonic glared at him and spat it out, crying louder. "It's not working!" Cubot shouted his processors, feeling like they were cracking, "I'll call the doctor." Orbot pulled up a holo screen phoning his master. "What is it?" Eggman growled, "Sorry to bother you, sir!" Orbot tried to yell over Sonic's screaming, "But something is wrong with the baby."

"He won't shut up!" Cubot added. Eggman moaned on the other line rubbing his temples, "You two are useless. I'll be there in a second." he said and promptly hung up.

A minute later, he walked into the nursery. (He could hear the upset hoglet's cries from all the way down the hall) Standing at the doorway, he angrily tapped his foot and demanded. "What's the matter with him?"

Cubot answered as he struggled to hold Sonic wiggling frantically in his arms, "We don't know! Ow! He attempted to leave the nursery and-ow ow! Started crying."

"We tried the pacifier, but he wouldn't take it." Orbot finished. Eggman made a face at the pair before carefully taking the blue blur from Cubot. Sonic stopped his tantrum the moment he was in the doctor's arms, "Hmph, well what da' ya know..." he chuckled, smiling in amusement, "Looks like he's already bonded with me."

 _Actually, I just wanted to get away from those two. They don't know what they're doing._ Sonic glowered at the two robots holding on to the human's red jacket, not wanting to get any closer to the two.

Feeling triumphant that one of his plans was finally working, Eggman decided to take Sonic with him out of the nursery, "You two dunderheads go back to work, I'll take care of the baby hog." Orbot and Cubot nodded, leaving the nursery to return to their assigned tasks.

"Don't worry about those two," Eggman whispered and booped his black nose, "you'll get used to them...eventually." They walked down the hallway and into the computer room, "Why don't you help Daddy with his work, hm? We can spy on you're no good friends and plan on how to take over the village together." He sat down, placing the blue blur in his lap. Sonic's head was just high enough to see over the keyboard. Looking up, he saw his friend's homes on the monitors, parts of the village, and other island areas. _Hey, that's my shack!_ _I knew Egghead had been spying on us for a while, but having cameras at our houses, this is a whole new line of creepy._ A chill ran down his spine, thinking of all the embarrassing things Eggman might have caught him doing while alone. Looking back at the screen, he saw a familiar face. _There's Knuckles!_ Sonic squeaked and pointed to the screen.

"Oh, you see the red one right there? Watch this." Eggman pushed a button as Knuckles walked under a coconut tree. Sonic watched as coconut hit his friend on the head, causing him to stumble in a daze and fall back. "Hahahahahaa! That stupid Nibbles never sees it coming!" Eggman laughed, Sonic laughed a little bit also. Eggman glanced down at the hedgie with an evil grin, "Ya like that, huh? Watch this..." he pulled up this time a view of Orbot and Cubot somewhere in the base cleaning.

Eggman pushes another button on the keyboard, and a nearby lamp exploded, "Aaaah! Not again!" Cubot yells, rushing to stop the flames with his broom, that not working, he began comically running around the room in circles. Sonic burst into a fit of giggles, wanting the robot to do something else funny. He pressed the same button on the keyboard, another lamp exploded, adding to the flames Cubot became more frantic and flailed his arms screaming. Orbot appeared just before the fire got out of control, dousing it with a fire extinguisher covering the room and Cubot in a sea of white foam.

"Hahahhah, haha! Nice job! You'll turn into a great villain practicing on those two, hahahhah!" Eggman leans back, wiping the tears from his eyes. Sonic covered his mouth, still giggling. Hanging out with Eggman was pretty fun.

"Ooooohh boys~" Mom-bot sang, entering the computer room, "It's dinner time!" Eggman closed the video feeds and stood up, following the robot to the dining room, "What are we having tonight?"

"Filet mignon with mashed sweet potatoes, steamed veggies, and apple pie for dessert." Sonic's mouth watered, and he licked his lips. He was starving.

* * *

Eggman gave Sonic to Mom-bot as he took his seat at the table, while Sonic was placed next to him in a highchair. Metal entered the large dining room chef hat atop his head, holding the doctor's and Sonic's meal in each hand.

Sonic shrunk inside his seat, remembering what his duplicate had done to Shadow earlier today; he whimpered as the robot came closer with his plate. Metal placed each meal in front of their respective owners and uncovered the plates. Eggman wafted the scent of his filet mignon, "Mmmm, looks good, Metal. You may go." Eggman waved him off as he dug in; Metal scanned his smaller organic copy, who was fearfully staring back at him. Appeased for the moment, the robot left his master to his dinner. He would take care of the blue blur later.

Sonic let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. _Hate these darned baby instincts, so sensitive to everything. I can't believe I'm scared of Metal now._ He continued to tremble until a hand scratched his ear, and he relaxed, "We'll have to work on that, can't have you being afraid of Metal, can we? There's no need to be scared of him now, Sonic. I've reprogramed him to protect you." The hoglet warily looked back to the doors Metal had disappeared behind. _Protect me? I think you have some bugs to tweak out cause he still has that look of murder in his eyes._

Eggman stopped scratching his ears and resumed his dinner. "Alright, Mom-bot, why don't you feed the little rascal." Mom-bot clapped her hands, "Oh, boy! You're going to love this honey lamb!" Sonic's ears perked at the mention of his dinner still sitting on the tray waiting for him. The robot picked up a spoon from the tray and a small bowl of something brown, "Open up, sweetheart. Here comes the choo choo train." she actually made train noises as she offered him the brown goop.

Sonic blanched at the food. It looked disgusting; he turned his head away, refusing. "Oh, come on, dear, it's yummy, see?" Mom-bot shoved the spoon into Eggman's mouth just as he opened it to take a bite of his dinner, "M-m-mom *cough cough* bot! *wheeze*" he choked quickly downing a glass of water, "D-don't do that again." Sonic pointed and laughed at the doctor's reaction before a mouthful of his dinner silenced him. "Sorry, dear, but it was the only way to get the baby to eat." Sonic swallowed, licking his lips, curving up slightly; the food was surprisingly tasty. He opened his mouth again for a second bite, "Yes! You like your yum yums!" The robot cooed; he rolled his eyes and ignored her baby talk focusing on enjoying his dinner, though he would have preferred to have feed himself.

A few minutes later, he finished the last bite. Mom-bot wiped some food that had gotten on his face while Eggman started his dessert. "Such a good boy, you ate it all! Can you say, Nana? Come on, say, Nana."

"What? No way is Nana going to be his first word. It's going to be Dada!" Eggman scratched the sweet spot behind Sonic's ear, and he purred. "Oh, but he loves his Nana more than mean old Daddy." Mom-bot retaliated, rubbing his other ear. Eggman scooped up a bite of his apple pie, bribing the little hedgehog, "Come on, Sonic say, Dada!"

"Oh no, you don't. That's cheating." she pushed away the spoon. "No, it's not. I'm merely encouraging him with positive reinforcement." Eggman offered him the sweet treat again, "Say, Dada!"

"Nana."

"Dada."

"Nana."

"Dada!"

Sonic ogled the dessert back and forth as they bickered, pouting each time it passed. _Screw this._ He thought, grabbing the spoon when it went by again and stuffed it in his mouth, "Mmmmmm!" dropping the spoon, he happily gummed down the dessert. "Ha, I won!" Eggman raises his hands in victory, "Ah ah ah. Naughty boy, you were supposed to say Nana before you got your reward." Mom-bot waggled her metal finger at the little hedgehog. "Mom-bot, don't scold him for doing something bad. I'm trying to raise him to be a proper villain; if you punish him, he'll turn into a goody-two-shoes again."

"Well, a proper villain should still have some manners. And by golly, my grandbaby will have them unlike yourself."

"What. Is that. Supposed to mean?" Eggman glared, puffing up his chest. Sonic's ears bent down, preparing for the yelling to start. _Uh oh, this is gonna get ugly._

"It means it wouldn't hurt you to excuse yourself every once in a while, or to say hello when you come home, or open the door for your Mom-bot, or-" she poked at his chest with each statement-making the doctor sink further and further into his chair. "Alright, alright!" he interrupted her before she could say anything more. "You can teach him how to be polite. And I'll teach him how to be a villain, but you better not make him soft!" Mom-bot nodded, "That's fine, dear."

"Good." Eggman checked his wristwatch, "Now it's bedtime for a certain babyhog." the human lifted the hoglet out of the highchair and left the dining room back to the nursery. Walking down the hallway, Eggman pulls the back of Sonic's diaper, "Tsk, looks like you need a change." the hedge hoglet blushes, looking away. Despite wearing the diapers for a week now, he still hasn't gotten used to the diaper checks.

Entering the nursery, Eggman gently places him on the changing table, straps him in, and gathers the needed supplies. While he waits, Sonic wonders what pattern his new diaper will have his time. _Who knew I'd be thinking about what kind of diaper I want to wear? I don't even wear any clothes besides my shoes and gloves._ He chuckled a bit. _I hope Egghead's got one with chili dogs on it; that'd be way past cool!_

He watched as Eggman got to work. Untapping the sides and lifted his blue legs, removing the dirty diaper. Taking a few baby wipes, he cleaned the blue blur's tushy, rolling up the wipes into the diaper, and threw it away. Sonic's eyes lit up, and he cooed, seeing Eggman reveal this diaper indeed had chili dogs on it. With a small smile, Eggman places him inside, tucking his tail in the hole and powders his crotch; some of the powder tickles his black nose, and he lets out the cutest little sneeze. Eggman's smile widens with a bit of a twinkle on his glasses. He tugs the front so it's snug, tapes the sides, and pats his bottom.

"There all clean, now how's about a bedtime story?"

 _Bedtime story?_ Sonic tilts his head like a confused puppy. The large human picks him up and walks over to a bookcase by the futuristic rocking chair. "Hmmm, let's see, let's see...ah perfect!" picking out a book, he sits down in the chair and adjusts his hold of the hoglet so he can see the pictures inside. Sonic looks over the cover picture of a humanoid robot holding what looks like a robotic hedgehog. _Heh, nice pick Egghead._ He thinks sarcastically, not in the least surprised the book is about robots. Eggman clears his throat and starts to read the story. It's about a robot hedgehog named Twinkle who wants to cuddle with everyone but is sad when no one wants to touch him because of his spikes.

As the story begins, everything fades into the background. Sonic becomes engrossed in the story forgetting that it was his arch-nemesis reading to him. All that mattered was the story. He feels sad for the robot hedgehog while he searches for someone to cuddle with. Sucking his thumb, he follows along with the pictures, hoping that Twinkle will find a friend at the end of the story. Eggman gets invested in the story also, doing funny voices for some of the characters and adding sound effects.

"Twinkle never shocked anyone again, except once in a while accidentally a few times when someone was really asking for it. Or on very special occasions just for fun. The End." Sonic yawned, happy the story did have a good ending as Eggman closed the book. "Looks like someone is ready for bed." He tiredly nods. Eggman places the book back in its place, grabs a bottle, and warms it up before laying Sonic in his crib. He gives the hedgie his bottle and watches him drink, emerald eyes growing heavier with each drop. Eggman listens to his purrs as he leans over and gives Sonic's ear another rub.

"Good night, my little babyhog." with that, the human turns off the overhead light, makes sure the nightlight is on, and leaves; Sonic sucks the warm milk a few more times before closing his eyes and letting the bottle roll away, falling into a dreamless sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> By the way, the story Eggman reads to Sonic is a real book called "Twinkle Twinkle, Little Hedgehog" It's really cute, and I thought it was perfect for Daddy Eggman to read to Baby Sonic!


	20. Chapter 20 Escape

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Sorry for not posting last week, I got busy prepping for a Little weekend and when I got back my power and internet went out. Will be posting regularly again if the weather doesn't make me lose power and internet again. Thanks for your patience!*

Sonic woke up bright and early, a little disoriented, not recognizing where he was. _Mhh? This isn't my crib..._ Rubbing his eyes, he turned to his side, slowly his mind woke up with the rest of him. _Oh, I'm in Eggman's base. That's right, gotta escape before I turn into my adult self again. But first, I'm gonna need a change before I try anything, don't want to be crawling around with a dirty diapee._ He lightly laughed at what he just called the diaper. Kicking the blanket off, he rolled over to grab the bars steadying himself to stand up and wet his diaper. _There now to call for some assistance._ Waddling to the headboard, he pushed the two red and yellow buttons and waited.

"You rang, young master?" Orbot dully called as he and Cubot entered. Sonic pointed at his diaper, "Oh, dear. I'll get Mom-bot. She is programmed to deal with these kinds of things. Cubot watch Baby Sonic while I'm gone. I'll be right back."

* * *

Orbot returned a few minutes later with the motherly robot, "Good morning, sweetie pie! Did you sleep well?" she cheerily greeted, "The kid says he wants something. Probably somethin' to do with that white thing he's wear'n." Cubot gestures to the little hedgehog. "I'll be the judge of that." Mom-bot picks him up and pulls the front of his diaper, "Oh my, somebody had to potty badly this morning. Don't worry; Nana will get you all cleaned up~" she pats his back, taking him to the changing table. Putting a finger to his mouth, he shyly blushed; he was never going to get used to these diaper checks.

Most everyone who had changed him took their time with the diaper changes, but Mom-bot was fast. All he saw was a blur of grey hands before he found himself already clean, and in a new diaper, this one had little stars on it. He smiled, happy that the change was quick so that he could enact his escape plan sooner. She raised him over her head, "There we go, happy boy all clean!" she gave his bottom a couple of pats and set him down on the floor, "Now you stay with these two while Nana makes you and Daddy a yummy breakfast ok?" with that she left the little hedgie to his own devices.

He smirked after the robot left. _Perfect! Now to get out of here. First, I needed to distract Or and Cubot._ Crawling to them, he waved and squeaked to get their attention. "Ah-ah!"

"Mh? What is it now, little one?" Orbot asks; Sonic covers his eyes and opens them again. "Has he got something in his eye?"

"No, Cubot. I think he wants to play a game... perhaps something like peek a boo."

"Oh, I love that game!" Cubot hops. _Hook line and sinker._ Sonic refrains from smirking, instead smiling innocently, covering and opening his eyes again. Orbot and Cubot cover their lenses, "Where's the baby?"

"Here, he is!" Sonic laughs as Cubot and Orbot repeat the game a few times before Sonic indicates it was time to play a different game. He crawls under the crib and pokes his head out, squeaking, "Oh, you want to play hide and seek now. Alright, I'll start us off." Orbot covers his lenses and begins counting, "Ooooooh, where ta hide where ta hide?!" Cubot whispers, swiftly looking around for a hiding place before he ended up turning into a cube right in plain sight.

 _Now's my chance._ Sonic made a mad dash for the door as Orbot continued to count. He was thankful that the door opened silently, leaving his robotic babysitters unaware of his escape. Cautiously, he peeked around for any patrol bots; the coast clear, he turned right and headed straight for a vent he had spotted yesterday. Plucking a quill, he unscrewed the two bottom screws and crawled inside the dusty ventilation system.

 _Any minute now, and they'll have realized I'm gone. I need to find out where the hangar is and fast before the alarms go off._ He thought, wandering through the air ducts, hoping he would find what he was looking for quickly.

20 minutes later, Sonic was still crawling, surprised no one had alerted Eggman to his disappearance, just then he covered his ears as Eggman's voice blasted through the speakers, **"Attention, the Baby hedgehog is loose. Baby hedgehog is loose. Capture and return. Repeat Capture and return. If one of you so much as plucks a quill off his head, you'll be dismantled!"**

 _Aww, how sweet._ Sonic grimaced, the ringing in his ears subsiding _. He really cares. But back to the matter at hand._ Sonic looked down a vent to see swarms of patrol bots searching for him. Including his metal duplicate, Sonic quickly backed away from the opening and covered his mouth. Metal's piercing red laser eyes scanned the hallway standing still a few agonizing moments before beeping and walking out of sight.

Sonic sighs. _That was too close. I gotta find the hangar. Darn it! Where's a map when you need one?_ Suddenly he felt a wave of nausea wash over him. _Uh oh...hugh, here it comes..._ He curled himself up into a ball, waiting for the transformation; moments later, he flashed bright pink and reverted into his adult self. "Uhhhh. I hate that part." Groaning, he uncurled and shook away the light headache before returning to his expedition.

* * *

Several twists and turns later, his ears perked at the sound of a loud booming voice, "I don't care if you have to turn the whole base upside down. Just find him!" Sonic crawled further, following the voice to a grate up ahead. Peeking down, he saw Eggman standing by a massive computer huffing and ordering something to one of the patrol bots. "He couldn't have gone far we ju-" Sonic didn't pay attention to the rest of the human's ranting; something about the room below felt familiar to him. _Wait a minute. This is where Eggbreath brought me last night to watch the cameras. I wonder if he has a map of his base somewhere inside that computer?_

Shortly after Eggman finished giving orders to the robot, both parties then exited the room. Sonic waited a few seconds (for him more like a few minutes), making sure Eggman didn't come back before leaving his safe spot.

_Perfect!_

Gingerly lifting the vent, he jumped down, landing on his uncoordinated legs harshly with a thud. "Ouch! This is a lot easier when I can use my legs..." He moaned, toddling to the control panel, and climbed into the chair. "Ok, ok. Let's see what we got here...this button made the lights blow up, and this I think was for the cameras." clicking the keyboard, the security cameras all came into view on the screen alongside a map of the whole base. He couldn't help but fist pump in congratulations to himself.

The computer room was in the eastern part of the base while the hanger was on the opposite side. While Sonic would typically just run over the ocean separating the doctor's island and Bygone Island to get home; however, he could barely walk as it was right now, so that wasn't an option. He needed the Eggmobile to get home. "And of course, I'm waaaaay on the other side of where I need to be..." He combed his hands through his quills, "How to get there without getting caught? This place is crawling with bots." His eye caught something round with a mustache passing one of the cameras. Looking back at the video feeds, he saw Mom-bot going down a hallway.

Smirking, he grabbed a microphone nearby and cleared his throat. "Ahem, attention, Mom-bot. I need you in the computer room right away!" hearing Eggman's voice, the motherly robot looked back at the camera, "I'll be right there in a jiffy!" she chirped before changing directions. Sonic turned off the microphone and cleared his throat again, speaking in his normal voice. "Looks like all that time spent imitating Egghead wasn't a waste after all, eh Shads?"

As Mom-bot hurried to the room, Sonic decided he would have a little bit of fun with her. Quickly hopping off the chair, he hid on the other side of the control panel. Mom-bot entered seconds after he settled into his hiding spot, "What is it, Eggypoo? Did you find my precious grandbaby?" Sonic covered his mouth, trying to quiet his giggling. He peeked around the corner and waited for her to come closer. Could you scare a robot? Well, he was about to find out.

When the robot was just inches from his face, he leaped up and yelled childishly, "BOO!" Mom-bot jumped, shrieking, "Oh, my gracious!" the robot gasped, looking down to see what had frightened her so, Sonic beamed at her poking his head out of the hidey-hole. "Sonic!" she picked up the grown hedgehog, "There you are, sweetie, you had me worried sick!"

Sonic blinked his eyes innocently, trying to baby it up so she would do as he asked, changing his voice to a more childish tone and adding a lisp. "Sowwy, Nana."

"Oh! You said your first word! You said, Nana! Sonic does love his Nana!" she cooed, crushing him in a hug, "Na...Na...air..." he gasped, she eased her hold. "Whoops! Sorry honey bun...my my, you've gotten big too!"

"Tanks, Nana. Um, could you take me to the Eggmowbile?"

"Why do you want to go there?" Sonic started to sweat a bit. He hadn't thought that far but thinking on the fly was what he did best. "Um, Daddy wanted me to meet him thewe this mowning, but I gots lost. Can you take me thewe?"

"Well, I suppose so since your father wanted to meet you there."

"Tanks a-a-and is thewe any way you could do it without wunning into Metal he scawes me." He pouted, lip trembling, "Oh my poor baby. Did that mean Metal scare you yesterday?" he pathetically nodded, milking the robot for all she was worth. "Don't you worry, sweetheart Nana will make sure he doesn't get you." Cradling him, she walked out of the room and went down the hallways, "In fact, I'll have a nice little talk with him after I drop you off."

Sonic smiled wickedly. His plan was working like a charm!

* * *

Several minutes later, they entered the hangar. Mom-bot set the hedgehog down by the inactive vehicle and pat his head, "Now you stay right here and wait for your Daddy. I'll go find Metal and give him a good talking to."

"Otay! Tanks Nana!" He fluttered his eyes, "So precious! I'll see you later, sweetie Buh bye!" she briefly pinched his cheeks and left. Sonic waved until the doors slid closed behind her.

Making haste, he climbed into the Eggmobile, "Ok, ok...let's see." He looked over the buttons, searching for the one that turned on the vehicle. He spotted a button that looked suspiciously familiar, "Here goes nothing." He shrugged, pressing the green button; the hovercraft roared to life, "Alright! I can't believe that worked!" Flicking a switch, the vehicle purred, floating into the air.

Taking the wheel, he guided the machine up to the roof. The ceiling doors opened to the vast bright blue sky, and Sonic felt his heart flutter as he rose higher into the sea breeze; he did it! He was free! "Thank you, Eggy!"

Sonic smiled sadly, feeling a little bad leaving Eggman like this since he had been so nice to him, treating him like the son he never had. But then again, he did want to use Sonic for his nefarious purposes, so maybe it was better this way. Changing his focus to getting back home, he tightened his grip on the wheel, smirking as his hand hovered over the clutch, "Now let's see what this baby can really do!" he floored all the power into the engine.

"VRRRRRROOOOOOOM!" The Eggmobile roared, speeding off through the sky, butterfly's in his stomach, Sonic howled, exhilarated by the winds blowing past him.

* * *

*Meanwhile*

Shadow, Tails, Knuckles, and Amy were all on the Tornado flying toward Eggman's base to rescue their already unknowingly escaped leader. The team had left early that morning as soon as Shadow had recovered from his near-drowning.

The ebony hog had awoken in a rage that morning screaming threats and profanities when he realized Metal Sonic had successfully captured their blue leader. After the team's rude awakening from Shadow, they had left the island just as the sun rose over the horizon. Since taking flight, Shadow thankfully had calmed down a bit, but Tails could swear he could still practically see the steam coming out of his ears. "That son of a bitch is going to get it if he so much as touches one quill-"

"Enough, Shadow, we get it! Just save some for me, will ya!" Amy interrupted her head was hurting from his constant grumbling, "Yeah, me too!" Knuckles added, pounding his fists together. "Keep your heads on, guys; Sonic should be just fine. We're almost there!" Tails was just as upset as everyone else, but he thought they were taking the kidnapping a bit too hard, especially Shadow. Sonic may be having age regression issues at the moment, but that didn't mean he was utterly helpless.

Amy covers a hand over her eyes, squinting at a dot in the distance, "Wait...Tails, do you see that?" she called over the engines. Tails looks to where Amy is pointing and glances at the radar, "It's Eggman!"

"Finally." Shadow straightens his posture forming a chaos spear in his gloved hand. Taking aim, he throws the spear, but it misses the vehicle speeding straight for them. "Everybody hold on!" Tails yells, quickly maneuvering the plane out of the way. Amy screams, gripping her seat like a lifeline.

"Yaaaaaaahooooooooh!" Comes a yell from the Eggmobile as it just misses them. Tails catches a glimpse of something blue as it passes. _That looked like Sonic, but it couldn't be, could it?_ Was he seeing things? Maybe someone else saw what was in the cockpit. "Was that Sonic?!"

Shadow jerks his head back and sees a blue blob at the wheel, "I think so. Follow him!" Tails obeys, turning the aircraft back towards Bygone island in hot pursuit. The fox digs under his seat and hands Amy a pair of binoculars, "See if it is him!" He yells; Amy takes the binoculars and looks in. "That's definitely Sonic. How did he manage to escape?" she hands them back to the fox, who smiles, shaking his head. "You know Sonic. He can never stay in one place for too long." He knew Eggman wouldn't be able to keep the supersonic hedgehog for long.


	21. Chapter 21 Crash landings and Confessions

Everyone watched in horror as the Eggmobile crashed onto the beach. Tails landed the plane as quickly and safely as he could, jumping out of the cockpit when they landed with Shadow on his tail.

* * *

When they reached the crash site, their jaws dropped. Smoke poured out of the crushed engine, lights blinking erratically, several alarms were sounding off, and the cockpit was empty with no sign of the blue blur.

"Sonic? Sonic! Where are you?" Tails called in a panic crawling over the wreckage, looking for any sign of what had happened to his brother.

Shadow followed carefully, stepping over pieces of warped metal, wondering where his blue counterpart had disappeared too. His sensitive ears twitch, hearing something other than Tails' calls. "Shh, listen!" Shadow whisper yelled at the fox, putting a finger to his lips and pointed to the other side of the vehicle.

The duo crept around and saw a bundle of blue quills mostly unharmed aside from a few scratches and bruises, laying on his back laughing hysterically, tears pouring out of his eyes, and kicking his legs in the air. "Sonic!" Tails rushes to his brother's side, "Are you ok? Did Eggman do anything to you? How many fingers am I holding up?" He asked quickly, but Sonic only laughed harder, gripping his tan stomach as he gasped for air between his convulsions. "Sonic, what's wrong with you? Snap out of it! You need to get a hold of your-" Tails paused, feeling a firm hand on his shoulder, "Stop. He's in a state of hysterics. There's nothing we can do until he calms down." The fox worriedly looked back to his brother, still laughing like he had gone crazy. He nodded silently, hoping Sonic would be ok.

A minute later, Amy and Knuckles showed up. Shadow explained what was going on and suggested they wait before doing anything else.

5 minutes later, the blue blur started to come back to reality. Holding his chest as he caught his breath, he felt light-headed, and everything was a bit hazy. At some point, he felt someone sit him up against a tree and a coconut husk filled with milk placed into his hands. He gratefully gulped the beverage, and sighed as the fog in his brain from not having had anything to eat or drink all day, began to fade. "Thanks, guys." he lazily wiped away a dribble from his chin. "Feeling better?" Amy asks. He nodded. "Yeah...just, tired."

"How did you escape?" Tails slowly asks, "Oh...I uh, just hid in the air ducts until I could hitch a ride..." he slurred, head bobbing up and down, fighting the urge to fall asleep. Shadow noticed the glaze coming over his green eyes, "Get some rest, Sonic; you've had an eventful last couple of days. We can take care of everything from here." he nodded. The blue hedgehog offered a relieved crooked smile, "Yeah...o-k." and with that, he was out like a light.

Knuckles gently picked Sonic up and cradled the knocked out blue hog in his arms. "What now?" He quietly asks. "Now, Pinky, Fox boy, and I will go back and have a word with the good doctor. You stay here and watch over Sonic until we get back."

"Awww, why can't I go with you guys?" Knuckles asks in disappointment.

"Because someone needs to look after the baby while we're gone!" Knuckles pouted; he liked watching over his babyfied friend but wanted to smash Egghead's face too. "Can't we just take him with us?" Amy put a hand over the giant's shoulder, "No, Knuckles, he's not in any condition to be alone right now, and we can't risk letting Sonic get captured again. He needs someone big and strong to protect him right now. You can do that for him, right, Knuckles?"

She was right. He was the strongest on their team, and her appeal to his protective nature worked on him like a charm. "Weeell, I guess so." he smiles a bit, "Thanks, big guy!" she jumps up and pecks his cheek, gratefully, "We'll be back soon!"

"Call us if anything urgent comes up." Tails gestures to his communicator.

"Don't worry about us. Just give that old Eggface a good pounding for me!" Shadow nods once, and the three leave to take care of their unfinished business.

* * *

A couple of hours later, Sonic awakens with a small headache, "Ugh, my head." he rubs his temples, "Mornin' sleepyhead!" Sonic blinks his eyes open to see himself being cradled by his echidna friend back at Amy's home. "Uh? W-what happened?" he croaked in confusion. The last thing he remembered was flying Eggman's eggmobile; when did he fall asleep? "You crashed Egghead's floaty thingy and passed out after we found you." He ran a gloved hand through his blue quills as everything came back to him.

"Oh yeah...now I remember. Hehe hehe, man, that was some ride! I should ask Tails if he can trick that thing up, and we could take it for a spin again." he chuckled, "Say where is everyone anyway?"

"The guys went back to Eggman's place, said they were gonna talk to him. Though I'd rather they give him a good pounding after kidnapping you. He didn't hurt you, did he?" Knuckles asked, caressing his face; Sonic purrs, pressing his face into those massive yet gentle hands, smiling. "Nah, Eggbelly barely even touched me. Actually, I had a good time there, but I'll tell ya about it later, right now..." he moved his face away and blushed, noticing his diaper felt a bit wet. "I-I could use a change if you don't mind?"

"No problem, little buddy!" Knuckles smiles and carried him to the nursery.

Sonic looked around the room as he was laid down. It felt good to be back in his nursery; he spotted his favorite toy waiting for him in the crib, "Hey Knux," he asked just before the echidna began the diaper change. "could you hand me Speedy?" Knuckles gave him the stuffed cheetah; Sonic hid behind the stuffy while he was changed. A bit embarrassed he had gone while asleep earlier; that was a first for him. He peeked around the stuffed animal to see what pattern his new diaper would have, but it was just a plain white one. _Aw man, I liked the one's Eggy had...maybe I can ask Amy to find some with some designs or colors on them, no girly ones though, yuck!_

Knuckles tapped up the sides putting his hands on his hips. He proudly looked over his work, "There! How did I do blue?" Sonic sat up and wiggled around in the new diaper. His ears perked at the crinkle noise, and gave a thumbs-up, "Feels good. You're getting better!"

"Alright! So what do you wanna do now?" Sonic tapped his chin, "Speedy, what do you wanna do?" he asked the stuffed animal and nodded resolutely, pretending he agreed with it said, "That sounds good! Speedy thinks we should order a pizza and watch a movie."

"Cool idea, Speedy! What kind of pizza do we want?" Knuckles asks, picking up the hedgehog, holding him like a baby, and walks back to the living room, "One with jalapenos and sausage and extra cheese. And we should get an ice cream Sunday too!" he demanded like a little boy hugging his stuffy. Knuckles smiled, happy to have his little blue buddy back home.

After he made the order, the two made a massive fort with the couches using all the pillows and blankets in the house and dubbed it the kingdom of television. Sonic happily ate all of his half of the pizza along with his ice cream Sunday and a bottle of soda, getting his face very messy while they watched a children's film. "Hey, Sonic," Knuckles asks while wiping chocolate syrup from Sonic's muzzle. "Yeah, Kux?"

"What's it like being a baby?" Sonic cocked a brow, "What's it like?"

"Yeah, like, do you like it or hate it?" Sonic chuckles; he wasn't sure how to answer his question, "Why do you ask?"

"Eh, just curious." Knuckles shrugs. Sonic rolls from his stomach to his back and lays his hands behind his head, thinking. "Well, If I hated it, I would be complaining a lot more...I guess the best way I can describe it is like you're sick and need to be taken care of but without the sick part. So it's like having all the benefits but without yucky parts. Does that make sense?" Knuckles scratches his stomach," Kind of?" (he didn't understand.) "Doesn't it get annoying having everyone do everything for you?"

"It did at first, but then...I got used to it and decided to take Amy's advice and look at the whole thing like taking a vacation. And you know what? I like it! It's been fun hanging out with you guys and not having to worry about anything." Knuckles nods, understanding at least that, "So you're not embarrassed?"

"Hehehe, I'm a little embarrassed. There are some things I still haven't gotten used to yet, like the diapee checks..." the hedgehog blushed a bit, Knuckles chuckles at him. "Yeah, I can't imagine wearing one of those."

"Hehe, ya know it's not so bad." Sonic furrows his brows and leans on his elbows, gesturing for his friend to come closer and whispers, "Can you keep a secret?" a serious look spreads on Knuckles' face; he leans forward and also whispers, "Yeah...what?"

"I uh...I actually, really like the diapees." Knuckles raises his brows, "No way!" Sonic bites his lip, blushing, wiggling his butt in the air, and nods shyly. The echidna smirked. The hedgehog was full of surprises! "When did you start liking them?"

"After the first day," he hid behind Speedy again, "t-they're convenient and soft."

"You look pretty cute in them too." Knuckles winks, Sonic blushes, his grin was twitching wider. "Really? Even when I'm big?"

"Yeah! You always look adorable in them!"

"Gee, thanks Knux."

"Hehe, come here, you adorable little hedgehog." Knuckles pulls him over and gives Sonic a lovable noogie, making both of them laugh. Sonic bats him away, and the two return to their movie.

Shortly after their talk, Knuckles leaves to go to the bathroom. Sonic just went in his diaper, happy he didn't have to miss any of the movie. Knuckles changed him afterward, and the two watched another film.

* * *

It was quite late before Shadow, Tails, and Amy returned. "What on Mobius?" Amy gasped, walking through the door and seeing someone or someones had completely renovated her living room. Knuckles poked his head out of the blankets. "Hey, your back!" Amy crossed her arms and sternly asked, "What happened to my living room?"

"We made a fort!" Knuckles replies. Sonic poked his head out above the echidna and silently waved at his friends. "Did you have to use all of the blankets and pillows in the house?!" Both nodded. Amy groaned at the two. Sonic whispered into the red giant's locks; he widened his eyes, listening before exclaiming, "Oh yeah! We ordered you guys some pizza. Too, if you want, it's inside the fort."

"Pizza? Alright, thanks!" Tails fist pumped and ran further into the room, dying for a greasy slice of pie. He bent down, attempting to enter the fort, before Sonic blocked the entrance, "Password." he signed, "Uh, password?" Tails asked; Sonic nodded. "Um...chili dogs are the best?" the fox shrugged, "Eh, close enough." pulling back the blanket; Sonic let his best friend in.

Amy sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. She felt like she was surrounded by children, "What am I gonna do with you guys...alright, let me in." Amy pushed her way past the blue blur; Shadow grunted, following behind.

"Wow! This place is enormous!" Tails exclaimed, taking a bite of the still-warm pizza. "I didn't realize I had this many pillows and blankets." Amy mused, taking a slice herself, and sits Indian style. Sonic returned to his spot sitting Indian style, also hugging Speedy, "How did it go with Eggman?" he asked.

"We peacefully agreed not to bother the other for the time being," said Shadow taking a swig of a bottle of soda. "A.k.a. Shadow threatened to shave his mustache and then pull out all his internal organs if he didn't leave us be until you were back to normal." Amy interpreted, "And that was after we destroyed all of his robots. Except for Orbot, Cubot, and Mom-bot, of course, they're harmless." Sonic silently thanked Chaos and sighed in relief that Mom-bot was ok, he didn't care that much about the other two, but he did like Mom-bot. Tails laughed, "You should have seen Eggman! He was squirming and squealing like a little girl! Hahaha!" Sonic frowned, "Aw, Shadow, did you have to be so hard on him?"

"Would you rather I had invited him for dinner and a dance after a show at the opera?" Shadow scowled, "No! But you could have died down the threats a bit. He may be an evil genius, but he's not exactly the best villain."

"The man threatens to send you six feet deep every week and attempts to take over the world with his crackpot inventions. I think he more than qualifies as a villain." Sonic huffs at Shadow. The ebony hog could be more bullheaded than him sometimes, "Just go easier on him next time, please." Shadow doesn't answer. Growling, he chugs the rest of his soda and lays back into a pile of pillows, pouting and ignoring the rest of the group.

Tails and Amy finish off the rest of the pizza and continue watching the movie with Sonic and Knuckles.

Sonic is the first to fall asleep towards the end of the movie, Tails and Knuckles follow shortly after him, Amy a little longer after the film finishes.

Shadow watches the group sleeping soundly with a small smile. Amused that they had all gradually crawled to each other in their sleep like magnets forming a colorful cuddle pile. It looked inviting; he wanted to join, yet he felt like this moment wasn't his to be a part of.

His gaze floated to the tv, now showing nothing but static, the noise grating his ears. He quietly crawled over the furry pile to turn the tv off, he sighed in relief, and his face relaxed. Suddenly he felt a firm grip pull his arm. Alarmed, he looked down to see Sonic while searching for Speedy he had lost in his sleep, found Shadow's arm instead, and was pulling him down as he cuddled the appendage. "Let go! You little..." Shadow whispered, pulling his arm back, but Sonic just held on tighter and turned to his side, taking Shadow with him.

Shadow groaned as he now found himself stuck between a rock and a hard place, I.e., stuck between being cuddled by his rival and squished by the rest of the inhabitants of the cuddle pile. Tired of the day's events, he breathed out and gave up on any thoughts of escaping. His eyelids drooped, and he smiled again, falling asleep to the soft breathing and snores of his fellow teammates.


	22. Chapter 22 Shadow's Reflection

Shadow awakens early the next morning, the sun still several hours away from rising. He gently moves a stray red lock from his face trying not to disturb the rest as he sits up. Ruby eyes gaze over the twisted limbs of his teammates, Tails is curled up in his two tails beside Sonic's head, Amy's arm reaches over the fox with one leg laying over the speeder's body, and Knuckles cuddling them all in his arm's protectively.

A small smile appeared on the ebony hog's face, something that was occurring with increasing frequency since he had joined Team Sonic.

It wasn't so bad. Before, he would never have imagined himself in this position, having basically a sleepover with a group of friends and not feeling too annoyed with their presence. In fact, the more he hangs out with them, the more Shadow wanted to be with them. Who would have thought that all the races, fights, and competitions with his rival would lead to this?

_Funny how things change over time._

* * *

It had started small, like anything else. When he and Sonic had their first encounter, Shadow had tried to run away and lose the hedgehog as he did with anyone else who came across his path. However, he didn't realize the one person he had run into was also a supersonic hedgehog. Sonic challenged him to race, and Shadow fiercely declined, threatening to knock his block off and would disappear, but that didn't deter the blue blur. Somehow he kept finding the ebony hog challenging him as the Ultimate Life form, pestering and begging to see who was the fastest. And as much as he didn't want to, Shadow didn't like to back out of a challenge. Soon enough, they would regularly have races and fight each other as rivals, each striving to better the other. With the contests and races came, of course, the trash talk, the snide comments, and a friendly punch every once in a while.

Then the blue blur brought one of his friends to act as a referee or help keep score. After being introduced to the speedy hedgehog's friends came a few invitations for a bite to eat after they were done sparing. Several invitations later, Shadow accepted once just to get him off his spiky back. The next thing he knew, they were spending hours talking, and he found himself hanging out with the Sonic Team long after their fights. He even joined in on a few of Sonic's battles with the doctor, and the group quickly realized how good Shadow was in actual combat.

The group deliberated and agreed to talk to the ebony hog into joining their team. Surprisingly all it took was a home-cooked meal by Amy and a few little comments on how inadequate Sonic was for him to accept.

* * *

He smiled a bit more at the memories. Despite still being mainly a loner, Shadow was glad he had accepted. Life was much more interesting now.

His thoughts were interrupted, ear twitching as he heard Sonic whimper in his sleep. He looked over to see the blue hedgehog's legs jerking, face contorted in distress, and whimpers increasing in volume. _Another nightmare?_

Carefully he pulled the blue hedgehog out of the pile into his embrace, gently rocking him in his lap. "Shhhhh, shhh, it's ok. Daddy's here," he softly whispered. Sensing the comforting presence, Sonic ceased his whimpers and started to calm down and relax. Continuing to dream as the nightmare faded away.

Shadow rocked him a little longer before returning him into the warm center of the pile. He gasped, cupping a hand over his mouth with a blush. Just realizing what he said, quickly, he stepped out of the fort and left.

Once he was safely outside of any preying eyes or ears, Shadow angrily hit himself repeatedly on the head, "Stupid, stupid, stupid! What the hell?! It's one thing for him to call me that, but to call myself that idiots father? I'm the Ultimate Life form! The hell's wrong with me?! What am I doing? I can't be pathetically attached to them...this-this wasn't supposed to happen...grrrraough!" He screamed, punching a tree with so much force it completely cracked in half and fell to the ground.

Still steaming, Shadow screamed again, then blasted on his hover skates, running blindly into the dark.

His thoughts swirled as he ran. Calling himself Sonic's Dad?! That was ridiculous! Ludicrous! Age wasn't an issue. Heck, he was old enough to be the annoyance's great, great, great, great, grandfather. Shadow was an ageless hybrid unable to reproduce, a downside to being half-alien. There was no way he could ever have another family, let alone friends...they all would die, leaving him alone...again. _And all my hard work to make sure it stayed that way gone. All because of that blue hedgehog and his friends!_

Shadow grit his fangs, angry at himself for letting his guard down and allowing that blue hedgehog to invade his life. As much as he blamed himself, he wanted to blame Sonic more. He was the one who ran into the ebony hog in the first place. Shadow thought about going back and giving the fastest thing alive a few choice words and sending a well-aimed chaos spear into his head before disappearing into the jungle, forever and yet.

He couldn't do it.

The thought alone made his heart waiver, and he stopped. _How could I do such a thing?_ Shadow looked down at his clenched fists. "I-I could never hurt him," he whispered.

Slowly looking up, he found he had stopped just at the edge of Shadow Canyon, not far from the entrance to the cave he and Sonic had traversed a few days ago. He thought back to that day, the broad smile on little Sonic's muzzle, those emerald eyes shining, it reminded Shadow of someone special he once knew a long time ago. "Maria..."

Shadow's heart ached at the thought of his best friend and older sister. He recalled when he would carry her with him as they raced along the corridors of his first home, space colony ARK. He could almost hear her voice.

* * *

"Faster, Shadow! Faster!"

"Maria! If the professor catches us like this, we'll be in big trouble." a younger Shadow said nervously. "I don't care, Shadow. Grandpa can be as mad as he wants! I feel good right now, and you don't have to do any training. I wanna make the most of this time right now!" She laughed; he couldn't argue with her. The girl was right, and Shadow couldn't say no to his sick friend.

Honestly, he wanted to go faster, too. "Alright, hang on!" He gripped her tighter to his chest, speeding down the hallways.

* * *

So much had happened since those innocent days. Despite being alive for so long, he hadn't seen much of the world since arriving to Mobius.

After Maria's death, Shadow had concluded it was meaningless to have any contact with others. His life-extending much longer than the average person's lifespan. It hurt too much. He isolated himself from civilization, only watching from a distance, that is until a certain speedy blue hedgehog appeared.

Breath shaking and ears low, Shadow looked up to the last bits of stars twinkling as the dawn of a new day crept into the sky. "Maria...I wonder what you would think of me now? I've tried to keep to myself after you passed. It hurt so much to lose you...I couldn't stand the thought of losing someone else, of having my heart broken again." He whimpered, a single tear falling as he gripped his inhibitor rings, "Recently, I meet someone, they remind me quite a bit of you." he chuckled lightly. "It's nice, nice to be with people again. I didn't realize how much I missed being around others...Maria?..., would you be happy for me if I found someone I care about now as much as I did for you? Would it be alright to be apart of a family again?"

He looked back up at the stars, ruby eyes searching for an answer, and widened when one starlit up brighter than the others. He smiled, "Thank you, Maria." He whispered.

Turning around, he raced back to Amy Rose's home just as a certain blue hedgehog was waking up.


	23. Chapter 23 Daddy Shadow

Sonic purred comfortably in the warmth of his friends; his nose twitched from a yellow fuzzy tail tickling his face. He brushes the annoying appendage away. And snuggles deeper into Knuckles' arms, wishing he could stay in the sleepy warm embrace of his friends. But the hedgehog could feel his energy build up inside, legs vibrating with energy as if he had had several cups of coffee. With a silent groan, he caves in to his body's insistent pestering; he starts to move. Reluctantly Sonic opens his eyes and carefully crawls out of the cuddle pile; looking at his still sleeping friends, he notices one clump of spikes missing. _Where's Shadow?_

Crawling out of the fort, Sonic enters the dark living room and sees the light coming out of the kitchen. His ear twitched to the sound of clattering dishes. Pushing himself on his feet, he unsteadily walks into the kitchen. Sonic rubs his eyes in disbelief when he sees Shadow clad in Amy's apron, humming a tune and head slightly bopping to the beat while preparing breakfast.

A small smile twitches on his face turning into a full-on grin as he watches Shadow. It was quite a sight to see the dark and brooding hedgehog acting so contrary to his usual behavior. Perhaps the dark hog was turning a new leaf?

Crossing his arms, Sonic leaned onto the table, "Looks like someone's in a good mood this morning." Ruby eyes blink; Shadow turns to see who was up so early; he was surprised to see Sonic cheekily smiling at him.

"You're up early!"

"Eh, not really. I'm always awake around this time." he shrugs casually, "Funny, I only sleep for a few hours a night, yet I haven't seen you get up once." Sonic scratches the back of his head, "Yeah, I don't know why I just always have. It kinda sucks waking up so early. Nothing is open, and one else is up around this time, so I try and keep myself occupied until everyone wakes up." Shadow hums, nodding in agreement. "Well, perhaps we could keep each other company during those times. By the way, how did you sleep last night? I was afraid that nightmare you had would make you... more irritable than usual."

"Me? Grumpy? Pfff, as if! I could never be as sour as you!"

"I'm just more serious about life than you," Shadow smirks, returning to his cooking. "What was your nightmare about? You were pretty upset." He asked again. The blue hedgehog raised a brow, "I was? I don't remember."

"Yeah, you were kicking and whining in your sleep. It took a few minutes for me to get you to calm down."

"Aww, gee Shads, you didn't have to do that."

"It's ok... it's what Dada's do." Sonic's face lit up red, the smile fell from his face, and his ears dropped. He stammered, "Y-y-you heard that, didn't you?" Shadow briefly peeked over his shoulder, chuckling. "Kinda hard not to hear a baby screaming his first word when you're in limbo." Sonic covered his face, rambling in embarrassment, "Oh, Chaos! Shadow, I didn't mean it! You know how I am in that state, I-I-I didn't know what I was saying! I know your not my dad. It was just-"

Shadow held a hand up, silencing the blue hedgehog, "No need to apologize."

"You-you're not...mad?" Sonic blinked; a pink blush grows on Shadow's cheeks as he pulled the last few pieces of bacon off and turned the coffee maker on. He was crossing his arms, making sure to look down so his rival couldn't see his slight blush and leans on the counter. "No...I was actually kind of...flattered when you called me that. Besides, I've changed so many of your diapers. It's kinda hard not to feel like your Daddy." Sonic blushed back, "Really?"

"Yeah, no one's ever called me anything using that term of...affection, before, or well at least...not for a very long time."

"Shads wouldn't be an affectionate term?" Sonic asked sarcastically. The ebony hog huffed and shook his head, blush fading, "You know I don't like that nickname you so graciously gave to me." Sonic laughed, "Shads is a no go, but Dada or daddy is ok?" Shadow just smirked, shrugging, and pulled out the eggs from the fridge. Sonic laughed even harder, "Hahaha! You are so weird! But I think I can manage that." he winked and plucked a piece of bacon.

Shadow slapped his hand, "Ah, ah, ah. Not yet." Sonic released the slice of meat pouting and whined, "But Daddy, I'm hungry!"

"You can eat..." Shadow pinched his diaper, "after your change." he picked up the wet speedster and took him into the nursery.

Setting him down on the changing table. Sonic smiled and laid down, keeping perfectly still, allowing Shadow to change him. Twiddling his thumbs as his legs were lifted out of the wet diaper, "Hey, Daddy?" he asked, changing his tone to a more childish one."Yes, baby?" Shadow wiped clean the area and powdered, not blinking at the change of voice. "Um, do you think you and Mommy could find some diapers with pretty pictures on them? Like one's with dinosaurs or chili dogs?" Shadow blinked, ear twitching confused as to who Sonic was referring to. "You mean Amy and me?"

"Yeah, you and Mommy!" Shadow poked Sonic's blue tail into the hole and tugged on the front, making sure it was snug before taping the sides, "I think we can manage that." he smiles. Sonic sits up and hugs Shadow with his tail, wagging, "Thank you, Daddy!" Shadow blushes and hugs him back, a broad smile creeping on his face, tail wagging slightly also. "You're welcome, baby." he kisses him on the forehead, "Now let's go have breakfast." Shadow picks up the freshly diapered hog clapping his hands, ready to fill his belly.

As Shadow and Sonic eat their breakfast, the rest of the gang slowly wakes up and joins them. Once everyone is awake, Sonic recounts his time with Eggman the previous day (excluding a few embarrassing parts) and explains how the doctor's brilliant plan this time was to adopt the blue hedgehog.

"Are you serious?! Eggman was gonna adopt you?" Tails exclaims, "That's what he said. He even had this whole process set up so that I would 'bond with him.' It was totally weird."

"I wonder what Eggman had in mind with his bonding?" Amy mused, "I don't know? I couldn't figure it out." Sonic shrugs, Tails recalls something relating to what his brother experienced, "I've read that infants bond by having frequent contact and time with their caregivers. Did you spend a lot of time with Eggman?" he asks, taking a bite of bacon. "Uh, yeah. I was with him almost constantly. He wouldn't even let Mom-bot hold me."

Amy covered her mouth to try and keep in her snickering. Sonic made a face at her, "What?" he asked. "It's just that...Hahaha, ah!" she laughed, not able to keep it in any longer. Everyone stared at her, not catching what was so funny to the pink hedgehog, "It's just trying to image Eggman taking care of a baby Sonic. It's so f-f-phffff, hahaha!"

"Aww, man! Can you imagine Egghead cuddling and kissing you?! Hahaha!" Tails laughed, Sonic's face turned tomato red, "He didn't do that!"

"No, but I bet he did change your diaper. Oh, I would have loved to seen the look on his face!" Shadow bent down, hiding his quivering smile, but his shaking shoulders gave away that he was laughing now too. Sonic growled, embarrassed, but he had to admit it was a funny image to configure up. "GUUUUUYYYYYS!"


	24. Chapter 24 It's Time

"Can you believe it's been a month since the incident at the tunnels?"

"I know, I can't believe so much has changed since then."

"Mommy?" A small voice calls. Amy turns away from washing the dishes and smiles at the blue hedgehog, "Yes, baby?"

"Can I has baba?" she wipes her hands with a towel and heads for the fridge, "Of course, do you want milk or juice?"

"Juice pwease!" Amy pours some apple juice into a light blue baby bottle, screwing the top nice and tight; she walks over to the couch and hands the bottle to Sonic, sitting beside Shadow with his toys. "Tanks, Mommy!" She ruffles his quills, lovingly, "You're welcome, my little emerald." Sonic purrs and drinks, resuming playing with Speedy while cuddling with Shadow happily. Shadow continues to read his book and smiles, softly scratching the blue hedgehog's ears.

* * *

Since his little talk with Sonic a few weeks ago, the blue blur opened up and started to call Shadow and Amy his 'Mommy and Daddy' or 'Mama and Dada' while in his baby form.

Shadow couldn't stop blushing the first few days, slightly embarrassed but didn't say anything. He would never admit out loud that he liked being referred to as the blue hedgehog's Daddy and how it would make his heart swell every time Sonic called him that, or how cute Sonic looked when he was playing or blushing whenever Shadow called him his little blueberry so shut up!

Amy didn't mind at all, since she had referred to herself as Mommy already anyway, she thought Sonic calling her, and Shadow Mommy and Daddy was rather cute and warmed her heart. She had also come up with a little nickname for him, calling Sonic her little emerald referring to his sparkling gem-like eyes.

The three hedgehog's relationship with each other had changed dramatically since Sonic's accident. He and Shadow now no longer rivals; in fact, they were closer than ever before. However, they didn't see eye to eye in everything. The blue blur's had, at last, to come to terms with his feelings for Amy as his Mommy, and the awkward air that had plagued the two for so long was gone.

Sonic felt more loved, safe, and wanted than he had ever had in his whole life!

Things have also been quiet in the village for the most part since Sonic's visit with Eggman, thanks to the doctor's agreement with Shadow, Amy, and Tails. Since then, he has only instigated two battles (more like minor disturbances to the peace), which Shadow and Knuckles took care of on Sonic's behalf without much issue.

The villagers didn't notice their blue hero's disappearance more concerned with their day-to-day affairs. Usually, such a fact would have irked the speedster for their ungratefulness, but it worked to his advantage this time, so he paid no mind.

Other than the two Eggman encounters, Shadow and Knuckles stay pretty busy, helping Tails gather supplies for the machine to fix Sonic, patrol and protect the village from any other dangers that might pop up, and help Amy take care of the babyfied hero.

They were all busy but happy.

But sadly, all good things must come to an end, and we all must grow up.

* * *

"Just one more adjustment...aaaaand, done! Whew!" Tails wiped the sweat from his brow, admiring the results of his month-long hard work. It had been a struggle figuring out how to reverse and stabilize the solution to re-age his hedgehog brother, but he had done it. "Now for a test drive." Tails placed a young sapling into the chamber, sealing the doors and putting his goggles on. He pulled the lever and waited for the machine to do its job. Gas-filled the chamber, covering the sampling in a cloud of blue. He waited for the substance to dissipate before opening the door, "Eureka! I've done it!" Smiling, Tails pulled out a fully grown blueberry bush, plucking a few berries he tasted them, "Mmmh! Sweet too!" placing the plant aside and turning the machine off, he nodded to himself, placing his hands on his hips. "Well done, Prowler, well done."

The fox checked his communicator; it was almost time for dinner. Making sure everything dangerous was safely put away, Tails locked up his workshop for the night and spun his tails heading for Amy's to tell everyone the good news.

"Hey, guys!" Tails greeted, opening the door, "Tails!" Sonic zipped to the door and picked up his friend, spinning the fox around in a big hug, "Haha! Sonic, what are you doing?"

"Just saying hello to my best buddy!" He set the fox back on his feet and ruffled his bangs, "How was your day?"

"Great, I finished the machine to turn you back to normal!"

"Really? That's awesome!" Knuckles piped from the couch, "What's awesome?" Amy asked, appearing from somewhere in the house. "Fox-boy finished the machine to turn blueberry back to normal." Shadow explained, "Oh, that's wonderful!" she clapped, "Yup! We can get you set up and back to normal first thing tomorrow." Tails pat the blue hedgehog on the back.

Sonic froze, standing still as a board beside his friend, and gulped. He had forgotten all about the cure Tails had been working on for him, quickly he put on a big fake smile before anyone noticed his hesitancy. "Ah, great! Just great, can't wait!" he nervously chuckled.

* * *

While everyone else was happily chatting and eating during dinner, Sonic stayed suspiciously quiet. He tried to listen to his friend's conversation to distract himself, but his thoughts kept wandering to what would happen tomorrow. It made his stomach twist and turn into knots. Slumping over, he pushed his food around on the plate. He couldn't bring himself to eat more than a few bites of Amy's tasty cooking tonight.

"Sonic?" his head snapped up, ears perked, Amy calling him out of his brooding, "Hm?" he hummed.

"Are you ok? You've been awfully quiet, and you hardly ate. Are you feeling alright?" glancing down, he noticed his plate was gone as well as everyone else's. Looking back up, he saw only Amy was still with him at the table. Everyone else had gone to the living room. "Oh, yeah! Fine!" He quickly lied and stretched his arms with a fake yawn, "Just tired; I guess hehe."

"Hmmm, maybe you should go to bed early tonight. You have a big day tomorrow, after all." Sonic shook his head, grinning nervously, "A-a-ah, it's okay! Honestly, I'mnotthattir-"

"Oh no, Mr., you've been spacing out all evening. I think you need to go to bed right now." Amy sternly said and picked up the hedgehog from his seat. "B-b-b-but Amy-"

"No butts. Come on." Sonic rolled his eyes and sighed, knowing he couldn't win an argument against the pink girl. He simply sighed, holding on to her as she carried him to the nursery.

Walking to the crib, she checked his diaper and found he was still dry. Amy gently laid him down, gave him Speedy, his paci, and pulled the warm blanket up to his chin. "There we go. Do you want your baba? Or anything else?"

"No, thanks." he mumbles under the covers, "Ok, sweet dreams, my little emerald." His heart fluttered as she kissed his forehead before she turned out the lights and closed the door. "Night...mommy." he sadly whispered, putting the paci in his mouth; he sucked and cuddled with Speedy.

Having nothing else to do, he tried to close his eyes and sleep but couldn't push past his anxiety for tomorrow.

On the one hand, he was excited to be back to normal finally. The daily transformations had gotten on his nerves, and he hated how he felt half sick every time for a few minutes afterward. He was more than ready to go outside again without supervision and run to his heart's content. He also wanted to bash a few Eggman robots before he started to get rusty.

On the other hand...he didn't want to go back to his lonely, boring shack.

He loved his soft and colorful nursery filled with fun toys. The only things he had back in his shack was a tv, a dartboard, a table, and a hammock. All boring and drab, no toys to play with, no stuffies to cuddle with, no changing table or diapers.

He'd have to quit wearing those entirely and go back to using the potty.

Sonic pouted ears drooping. _I don't wanna use the potty...I want my diapees!_ He nuzzled Speedy. _At least my hammock is kinda like a cradle, and I could get a toy chest and put some adult versions of some of my toys in it. I've seen some adult coloring books before, and everybody likes Legos and blocks!_ Looking into Speedy's eyes, he nodded resolutely. _And I'm definitely not getting rid of you!_ He hugged the plush lovingly. Out of all the toys he had, Speedy was his favorite.

A new thought suddenly occurred to him, he wouldn't be able to call Amy and Shadow his Mommy and Daddy anymore either...at least not in public, that would be too weird.

No more bottles or sippy cups. No more paci. No more of a lot of things he now loved. Ears pulled further back; his bottom lip quivered. Sonic sniffed, eyes watering; a few tears fell down his muzzle as he continued to think of all the things he'd have to stop doing once he was Big again.

Quietly he cried himself to sleep.

* * *

As usual, Sonic woke up bright and early the next day. _Today's the day. In a couple of hours, I'll be back to my normal adult self._ He pulled the blanket over his head, sucking the paci. A shiver went up his spine, bristling his quills, nervously he sucked harder and whimpered.

Usually, Sonic would have left the nursery and started playing in the living room or gone to the kitchen to see what Shadow was cooking and maybe help prepare breakfast, but this morning he didn't want to leave his crib. Comfort was what he wanted right now, and staying in his crib with his pacifier, and Speedy felt like the best place to get it.

Feeling the need to go, he sighed as he released his bladder, the wet warmth of the diaper calmed him a bit, and he closed his eyes, trying to relax. Maybe an early morning nap would help him forget and calm his nerves. Snuggling further into the covers, he went back to sleep.

Amy tied her light pink robe around her waist, walking into the kitchen, "Morning Shadow." she yawned; the dark hedgehog turned and nodded in greeting before returning his attention to the stove. Amy smiled and looked around, surprised not to find the blue blur playing with his toys or chatting with Shadow in the kitchen as had been his habit the last few weeks. "Where's Sonic?"

"I don't know. He never came out of his room this morning." she hummed in concern. She had noticed Sonic acting strangely yesterday evening. He had insisted that he was only tired at her inquiry, but Amy had a feeling something was bothering the blue hedgehog. "I'm going to go check on him."

"Alright, breakfast will be ready shortly." nodding, Amy left, wondering what was upsetting her little emerald as she walked to the nursery.

* * *

Slowly she opened the door and poked her head into the room to see Sonic in his crib. _Strange? Why is he still in bed?_ She wondered, tiptoeing to the crib bars watching him as he slept. She giggled when his legs twitched, indicating he was dreaming of running.

She would miss having the speedy hedgehog stay in her home. As soon as Tails fixed Sonic, he would probably go back to his shack without a second thought. Shadow would also go back to his cave, not needing to help her take care of their babyfied leader once he was back to normal. Leaving Amy to an empty house...well, not really... next to Tails workshop and Meh Burger, her home was where their group hung out the most.

 _Still, this place will feel empty once you go back home._ She sighed. _I can't think about it that right now. I need to think about what's best for Sonic; I'm sure he'll be relieved once this whole mess is over. It was nice while it lasted._ Blinking a tear away, she composed herself, looking back at the snoozing hedgehog. _He looks so peaceful I hate to wake him up._

"Sonic, sweetie." she softly whispered, rubbing his head, "It's time to get up." Moaning, he creaked open one eye muffling behind the pacifier, "Come on, sleepyhead. Let's get you changed. I'm sure you need one."

Pulling the blanket away, she picked him up, holding him against her chest, and rubbed his back before setting him down on the changing table. Sonic rubbed his eyes as she gathered the supplies, "Morning Mommy." he sleepy greeted with a crooked smile. Amy smiled back, "Morning. You sleep well last night?"

"Yeah." he stretched, a high pitched yawn escaping. She giggled at the cute noise, "Sounds like you're still tired."

"I'm not tired!" He whined, "Oh, then why didn't you get up out of your crib earlier like you usually do?" she asked with a hint of worry; she hoped he wasn't getting sick. "Just didn't feel like getting out." he said sleepily, "Ok. Are you sure you're feeling alright?" Amy hummed as she removed the wet diaper and wiped him dry; Sonic smiled a bit as she powdered. "I'm fine, Mommy, really." he insisted. Inwardly sighing, Amy decided to let it go for now. Perhaps he really had been tired the day before.

Throwing the old diaper away, she pulled out two designs for him to pick from, "Which diaper would you like to wear teddy bears or lions?"

Sonic's eyes lit up fully awake, pointing to the one covered with large yellow cats excitedly. Amy giggles. _It's a good thing I made him go to bed early last night._

"Big kitty cats it is!" she unfolded the diaper and tucked it under his bottom, poking his tail out; she tugged the front and taped the sides. Patting his front when she finished, "There we go, your last diaper change, in a few hours, you'll officially be a big boy!" Sonic's eyes widened microscopically. He had forgotten about that as he had wanted, now Amy had so graciously reminded him of why he had decided to sleep in, "Yaaaay!" he cheered in mock enthusiasm.

* * *

Sonic chewed on his breakfast with a blank expression as he watched Shadow, Amy, and Knuckles eating and chatting across the table as if everything was perfectly normal. He hoped no one noticed his right leg bouncing erratically under the table, a nervous tick he had developed over the years. It did nothing to ease the anxiety bubbling up in his gut. _What the hell is wrong with me? I'm never this nervous! Tails has got it all under control. I'll be fine. Nothing bad is gonna happen. It's just a simple...operation? No...cure? I'm not sick...ah hell, Tails is gonna turn me back to normal, and everything will go back to the way it was. Nothing to stress myself about, right? Right!_

Sonic tried to reassure himself with a positive outlook; seeing things from a positive perspective came naturally to the hedgehog. There was no point in fixating on the negative it never got him anywhere. He had made it through life so far, pretty well thinking that way. Still, no matter how positive he tried to be, he just couldn't shake away the pit in his stomach.

Before he knew it, it was time to go to the workshop; even though Sonic had gotten the hang of walking and running on his own again, Knuckles insisted he carried the speedster to their destination, Amy and Shadow followed behind.

Sonic clutched on to Speedy as they drew closer to his friend's workshop, having decided he would take the stuffy with him for comfort.

"Hey, Tails!" Knuckles calls as they enter. The fox pokes his head up from a laptop. "Hey, guys! Just give me a minute to get everything set up. Ok?" Sonic doesn't answer; he was distracted seeing the contraption his friend built to return him to normal. Looking it over, he noted that it was similar in structure to the original he had stumbled into a little over a month ago. The only difference between it and Tails' version was that this one was new and shiny; it also had a cushioned seat inside.

_Had that really happened only a month ago? It seems like it just happened yesterday yet so long ago at the same time._

His ears twitched in attention, returning Sonic to the present as Tails turned on the machine. It clicked and started to hum; Tails threw a thumbs up. "Alright, we are ready to rock!"

"You ready little guy?" Knuckles asks lightly, bouncing Sonic in his arms, but the babyfied hedgehog didn't respond a lump formed in his throat, stopping him from saying anything.

As Knuckles carries him to the machine, Sonic starts to shake. His heartbeat quickens with each step. He hugs Speedy so hard the toy's eyes look like they are about to pop out of its head, and his emerald eyes water. He feels pressure build in his chest like something is about to explode, and it does.

"NOOOOOOOOO!" he screams, scrambling, turning his back, and hiding into his giant red friend's shoulders latching on as if his life depended on it. "Nononono!"

Knuckles stumbles back, holding the shaking blue blur; everyone is shocked at this display; red, green, blue, and violet eyes dart to each other curiously.

Amy silently asks Tails what's wrong; the poor fox shrugs, clueless about why his brother was suddenly so upset and what to do to help him.

Amy looks back to the weeping blue form, curling around Knuckles' shoulders like a python, "Sonic...What's the matter?" The blue blur shakes his head, mumbling incoherently in between sobs, ears flat against his head, refusing to look at her.

Shadow gestures for Knuckles to bend down a bit, so Sonic is at eye level with them. He and Amy gently approach them, not wanting to upset their charge further.

Amy strokes the speedster's quills, hoping to calm him down enough that they can figure out how to help. "Sweetie, I'm sorry, but...could you repeat that. I couldn't understand you." sniffing, Sonic raises his head slightly. "I-I *sniff* d-don't wanna b-be a big boy." he hiccups, "I-I don't wanna grow up."

"Oh, sweetie. It's ok. Sh sh sh sh, it's ok." Amy continues to pet his head; she couldn't say she wasn't totally surprised by this. She had had her suspicions last night but had brushed them aside when he had claimed to be tired. Honestly, Amy didn't want to lose her blue baby either but knew she couldn't keep him like this forever. The pink hedgehog wracked her brain, trying to think of a way to convince Sonic to get inside the machine.

"Sonic, look at me." he didn't respond at first, but slowly, Sonic lifted his head entirely for them to see his eyes. Both Shadow and Amy's hearts break, seeing those puffy red eyes looking back at them, still pouring with tears.

It almost makes her want to cry. Why? Maybe it was because she and Sonic had grown closer over the past few weeks. Or perhaps she viewed the blue hedgehog as a little boy now who needed love and attention, and she wanted to give that to him. Or maybe she was just soft-hearted, and seeing anyone of her friends as upset as he was made her want to cry also. Pulling herself together, she wracked her brain for a way to convince Sonic to go through with this. "I-I know sweetie, it's hard to grow up." she said gently, "But...you didn't like being a baby at first, did you?" he sniffs and whimpers, "No..."

"Uh-huh, so what did you do? You were a big boy and made the best of the situation, right?"

"Right, a-and I had fun with you guys." she smiled warmly, "So did we. But you don't like changing ages every day, do you?" he pouted. "No, it's yucky!"

"Yeah, and Tails' machine here is going to fix that for you." he followed her finger, pointing back to the device, "So what da ya say you be a big boy again for us and go inside so Tails can fix you up...ok?"

He sighed, looking at the machine with uncertainty. His ears tilted down; maybe it was time to be a big boy-no...a grown-up again. As much as he wanted to, Sonic couldn't stay in his little world forever. Shadow and Knuckles wouldn't always be able to protect the village themselves. They needed the team back, and Eggman won't go easy on them for much longer. And if he was genuinely honest with himself being a baby wasn't always a piece of cake. He had had his fun; now, it was time to get back to work.

Sonic blinked as Knuckles wiped his tears, smiling softly at him; he looked back at his Mommy and Daddy, also smiling at him. "Don't worry. We'll be right here waiting for you." Shadow took his gloved hand and squeezed it gently. Sonic nodded and took a deep breath, "Ok...I'm ready." Shadow did the same, "That's my little blueberry." he said, cradling the blue hedgehog's face. Sonic leaned into the touch and smirked for a moment, then turned his face back to the machine with a determination. He was going to face this head-on as he did with every challenge. _Yeah, I'm ready._

Slowly Knuckles stood back up and walked to the machine; he hugged his blue friend close before gently placing him inside. Holding his beloved toy, Sonic waved at his friends as the doors closed, "See ya on the other side, buddy." Tails whispered.

Pushing the button, the dark blue gas entered the chamber. Sonic watched as the gas surrounded him. He felt the familiar feeling of warmth and comfort wrap around him one last time. "See ya soon, guys," he muttered as he curled up and fell asleep.


	25. Chapter 25 Back to Normal

**"S-s-soooooniiiiic...soooooniiiiic." Soft voices sang his name. He turned his head, looking for their source but saw only inky black darkness. He felt eerily calm floating there despite not knowing where he was or what had happened before.**

**Velvet ears twitched to the mysterious echoing voices no longer calling his name; they seemed to be having a conversation now. His ears twitched and turned frantically, trying to make out what they were saying, only catching bits and pieces as they spoke. _"Do you think- what's wrong-the same? How long- awake? Moving-not there-Sonic? Sonic?"_ Mouth opening slightly, he tried to call out, but he choked, his body jerked, clutching his head suddenly, feeling like it had been run over by a truck. Pulsating to the rhythm of his heartbeat. Everything was spinning, spinning, spinning. Failing, he was falling!**

Sonic gasped, shooting up; heart beating wildly, he looked around; where was he? Who called for him?!

Panting erratically, griping the blanket draped over his body. Gradually, alarmed eyes calmed as everything began to slow down. Moaning, he placed a hand to his head, still pounding. Rubbing his temples, the migraine lessened; it still hurt, but at least the room wasn't spinning anymore.

Blinking, he gazed at his surroundings. _Green couch, giant fireplace, it smells like motor oil here and...there are tools in the kitchen. I'm at Tails' house; how did I get here?_ He wondered, firmly shutting his eyes again and massaged his head; it seemed to help dull the pain in his head. _Think Sonic; what's the last thing you remember...I woke up, hung out with the gang, beat Eggface again, went to Meh Burger to celebrate then... Oh yeah! I came back here with Tails afterwards._ Huh, he chuckled, smiling a bit. "Must have partied too hard to go back to my place last night. Hehe." yawning, he scratched his stomach and rolled out of the makeshift bed.

Feeling the muscles in his legs itch, Sonic immediately started his daily leg stretches to warm them up. After this, he tossed the blanket that had fallen to the floor back on the bed. He wouldn't care so much if he was at his place, but he wanted to be respectful and at least try to pick up after himself. He also didn't want to be nagged again by his brother; he wasn't a total slob.

Walking out, he breathed in the fresh morning sea air, looking up to the sun rising high over the ocean waves. Looking behind the house, he could see evidence of the fox working hard on some project of his in the workshop.

The blue hedgehog wasn't doing to disturb him, "I'll check on him later." he decided.

Turning to the shoreline, Sonic bent down on all fours, getting into a runner's position, hands flat on the sand, one leg stretched back, the other slightly bent forward, tail erected high. He smirked, gazing into the distance, silently counting down for take-off.

3...2...1...Go!

He blasted down the beach, leaving a streak of blue behind him, running past home and around the village. The blue blur had energy to burn, and he didn't want to run someone over accidentally, thinking it best to stay away from pedestrians; that was a big no-no.

Quickly he turned east, making his way to Shadow Canyon. _Plenty of space to run there!_

A minute later, he arrived at the canyon. Seconds before reaching the edge, he leaped and landed on a platform. Grunting as he went from one side of the canyon's walls to the other with the utmost agility doing a few acrobatic tricks to keep things interesting. Sonic made his way down to the bottom and speed down the narrow walls, spin dashing a large boulder in his path. Pieces of the giant rock flew in all directions, the obstruction blown out of his way, covering him in its dust, but he didn't care. "Yeah! Woohoo!" He yelled, feeling the wind whip against him.

Spying the end of the canyon coming up fast, Sonic smirks and pushes himself forward, heading straight for the wall. Not missing a single step, he makes the needed adjustments for him to run up the wall at a 90-degree angle. Something that should be impossible to do, but not for this speedy hedgehog. Running out of wall, Sonic finds himself flying high in the sky, striking a few poses before landing safely in a crouch back on solid ground.

"Yeeeeees! Wooo Hooo!" Sonic pumped his fists in the air, cheering for joy, relishing the adrenaline rush. A great way to start the day and get the blood pumping, at least in his mind. Aside from his legs oddly feeling a little stiff, he felt refreshed, rejuvenated!

Yesterday he felt like he was going through the motions, wake up, run, eat, beat Eggman, hang out with his friends, go to bed, then start the next day. Same thing over and over again and again.

But today, right now...Sonic felt like he was on top of the world, ready to take on anything that came his way! Something had put the peep back in his step; he wished he knew what. Maybe it was because he had slept in today? "Eh, who knows." he shrugged, hands on his hips, chest pushed out in a heroic pose, eyes sparkling as he looked out over the canyon, a light wind swaying his quills.

Sonic wasn't much keen on desert-like areas, but the shadowy ravine was quite beautiful in its own way; various shades of red and orange painted the gorge like an abstract swirly painting. It was also a great place to workout: the natural twists, turns, and random rock slides serving as an ideal obstacle course.

He enjoyed the view for a few more minutes before his stomach made its self known; Sonic chuckles lightheartedly, patting his tan belly, "Don't worry, little fella. I'll fix you up with a niiiice chili dog." he licked his lips. Chili dogs always sounded good, and he felt like he hadn't had one in forever!

Kicking his legs up, the speedster dashed back to the village, leaving a dust cloud in his wake. Wondering if he would see any of his friends walking around and if they would join him to dine at the one stared restaurant.

* * *

"One dozen chili dogs, please!"

"Coming right up." Dave, the intern, groaned, turning his back on the blue hedgehog. Leaving the counter, Sonic grabbed a cup and walked to the soda machine to get his usual drink of choice. Then he struts up to the only table big enough to hold all the members of Team Sonic.

Sitting down, he took a sip while he waited for the rest of his friends to order their food. He scratched a gloved finger at a scorch mark on top of the wooden table, "Geez, this place is really going downhill."

"And it would do so much better if they would just take my suggestions on how to improve their restaurant. Never throw pearls before swine." Amy sighed, taking a seat beside her blue friend. "Yeah, pearls taste awful!" Sonic giggled, shaking his head at the red echidna's silly comment. "Well, somebody's in a good mood today~." Amy grinned, poking Sonic's arm playfully.

He shrugs and gives her a crooked smile as Tails and Shadow take their seats, "I feel pretty good, just came back from a run. My legs were itching like crazy when I woke up this morning. You know me never one to sit still for too long."

"So, that's where you went to this morning?" Tails asks, "I went to check on you earlier, and you disappeared."

"Oh, sorry to worry you, little bro. You were already working on something, and I didn't want to bother you. Thanks for letting me crash at your place last night, by the way." Tails smiled and waved him off, "No problem Sonic. You know you're welcome anytime!"

Before their conversation could go any further, Dave walked up to the table with several trays of food, "I have an order for a salad, dressing on the side, an Extra spicy Meh Burger Delux, 2 Meh Burgers with cheese, and..." he whined, trying to lift the last tray onto the table, "One... dozen... chili dogs."

Sonic's eyes widened, rubbing his gloved hands together, mouth-watering.

"Gimmiegimiegimmie!" He exclaimed childishly without realizing it. Grabbing the tray greedily. "My goodness Sonic, calm down! Did you really order that many? You can't possibly finish all those." Amy gasped, the blue hedgehog cheekily coked a brow eyeing the massive pile of food, "Oh yeah? Just watch me!" Instantly he wolves down a hand full of chili dogs, moaning in pleasure as he takes a bite. (You'd think Sonic had been half-starved the way he was downing those dogs.)

Shadow sighed, shaking his head; why was he not surprised. His rival's eyes were as big as his never-ending stomach. He tsked in disapproval seeing all the table manners he had taught the blue blur a few days ago had utterly gone out the window. "Chew with your mouth closed, Sonic." he reprimanded.

Sonic's eyes bugged out, hearing Shadow say his name. He was so shocked he choked on his food; gripping the table, he pounded a fist to his chest.

Amy and Tails pat the speedster on the back, minding his bristled quills, trying to help the hedgehog regain his breath. Slowly, Sonic recovered, and he gaped wide-eyed in shock at his rival, sitting across from him.

Shadow's ruby eyes darted side to side before looking back at him with a questioning brow, "What?"

"Y-you just said my name!" Sonic wheezed, Shadow's brow rose further, still confused. "Yeeeees?"

"You've never called me by my name before!"

"Yes, I have. I've done so for several weeks now."

"What? No way!" Sonic shook his head in disbelief. "He has Sonic! Don't you remember? A few weeks ago, when we were all at my workshop?" Tails says the blue hedgehog scratched his head, "He did? Hmm, I don't remember-" he didn't get to say anymore as Amy covered his mouth with a napkin wiping the chili off his face. "Be still so I can get the food off your face." he glared at her twisting his head back and forth, fighting the face cleaning like a disgruntled toddler.

"Amy! Mmph...Stop!" roughly he pushed her away, grumbling. Sonic quickly wiped the rest of the chili off his face with the back of his glove before she could attack him again. He huffed at her in annoyance, forgetting his shock at his rival's use of his name and returned to his meal; Amy rolled her eyes at Sonic's childishness, setting the dirty napkin aside.

* * *

With no one having any plans for the rest of the day, Team Sonic collectively decided to spend their Eggman free day together at the beach.

After a few games of soccer and volleyball, Amy offered refreshments at her home for the evening.

Jokes and delightful chatter filled the house. At some point, Knuckles suggested they play another game, and Amy pulled out twister. Several rounds of awkward positions and playful banter later, the pink hedgehog beat everyone in a landslide. Shadow complained about losing on a bet that he would win but bounced back with a small smile and baked a fresh batch of Amy's favorite cookies in her victory.

They never made it to the oven.

Another batch of this time fully cooked, cookie dough later found everyone relaxing by a small campfire under the stars.

Overall it was a picturesque day, and Sonic couldn't have asked for a better one spent with his friends. Crouching by the fire, the blue hedgehog yawned, stretching his arms, eyes half-lidded, watching the flames he stood up. "Well, guys, this has been fun. I think I'm gonna hit the sack, see ya round tomorrow?" he asked, brushing the sand from his fur. Tails looked up at him in surprise, "You sure, Sonic? It's still kinda early?"

"Let him go, Tails. It's been a while since he's been on his own or at his shack. He's also still probably recovering from yesterday." Shadow reminded the fox; Sonic turned to the ebony hog lying on his back in puzzlement. _He talks like I've been gone or something, and what does he mean recovering? I feel just fine!_

The sound of Tails' voice stopped him from questioning any further, "Oh, right! Go ahead, bro, get some rest!" Tails smiled a knowing smile at him; it only confused the hedgehog further. "Alright..." Sonic said slowly, still lost as to what they were referring to but put his confusion aside. He was just tired; besides, whatever they were talking about probably wasn't that important. Clearing his throat, he bid his friend goodnight and waved before speeding back to his shack.

Yawning, he walks into the door, "Oooooh, man, what a day. I'm beat." he groans lazily, falling face-first into his hammock; Sonic sighs, rocking in his hammock in the quiet house for several minutes, waiting for sleep.

_It's too quiet._

Despite his drowsiness, the silent stillness of the night left his mind abuzz with activity refusing to settle down.

Blowing out a puff of air in frustration, he turned his head, attempting to get more comfortable when he spots something lying on top of his small tv. One ear flops down while the other perks up in confusion. _Funny, I don't remember ordering anything?_ Interest peaked, and with nothing else to do, he gets up with a grunt and grabs the small package wrapped in shiny red wrapping paper with a green bow on top.

Sonic examines the gift and sees a tag attached to the bow that reads that the present is for him. He tentatively gives it a shake and hears something bouncing inside.

A small smile twitches on the side of his muzzle. In a little burst of excitement, he quickly rips off the wrapping paper and opens the box, only to frown in confusion; inside was a stuffed cheetah, a red object tied to a string, and a folded letter.

He opened the message first, hoping it would answer the strange gifts' origin and or purpose.

_"To our little boy,_

_Your favorite toy to keep you company if you ever feel lonely and we aren't there or want someone to cuddle with. Even though we won't be able to spend as much time with you now, know that you'll always be our little emerald/blueberry._

_Love,_

_Mommy and Daddy_

_P. S._

_If I ever catch you with your thumb in your mouth instead of this, I'll give you a good smack in the quills!"_

Sonic was even more confused now. "Mom and Dad? I don't have any parents. I mean the present is nice and all. I appreciate the gesture...come to think of it, I can't remember the last time I got an actual gift that wasn't a chili dog. I mean, come on, yeah, I love them, but I don't want one for my birthday every year but... That's beside the point. Who are these people?"

Sonic picked up the stuffed cheetah examining it, he couldn't believe how soft it was, perfect for hugging, and it was also quite cute. Placing the toy in his lap, he next plucked the string attached to the pacifier, "What is this thing? Is it...candy?" He knew he had seen something similar to the red object before but couldn't place where he had seen it. Tentatively he licked the rubber nipple. Nope, not candy. He concluded. Glancing at the letter and tag again, he confirmed that the mysterious gift was for him. "Well, the message did say it's supposed to go in my mouth." shrugging, Sonic places the pacifier between his lips.

Instinctively he started to suck. Emerald eyes widened and fell back half-closed as Sonic felt a wave of peacefulness wash over him; whatever this thing was...he liked it.

Eyelids drooping further. His mind and body relaxed, laying back down into the hammock. The thoughts in his mind quieted down enough for him to hear the sound of crashing waves in the distance and the soft thumping of the pacifier.

Sonic's eyes flickered closed as he curled around the stuffed cheetah, falling asleep to a warm breeze, gently rocking the hedgehog to sleep.


	26. Chapter 26 Sleeping Like A Baby

**Blinking his blue eyelids open, Sonic saw Amy a few inches away from him on the couch, softly humming a cheery tune and folding some laundry. He smiled beneath the bobbing paci and kicked his legs a bit under a soft yellow blanket. Amy seeing the movement, looked over and smiled kindly at him, "Well, good morning, baby! Did you have a nice nap in your bouncer?" he smiled wider and kicked his legs more, cooing. "Awwww, is someone happy to see Mommy?"**

**He squeaked, kicking his legs faster, making the bouncer bob up and down slightly. Amy giggled at his boundless energy, even as a baby hedgehog.**

**She returned to her laundry; the little hedgie looked up at the toys hanging over his head. He wondered how high he could bounce himself, kicking his legs, he rhythmically bobbed up and down in his seat.**

**Suddenly he stopped, a pressure building in his stomach he clenched as something underneath him exploded. He started to cry, the pacifier falling out of his mouth. Amy quickly pulled Sonic out of the bouncer, "Aww, what's wrong, sweetheart?" She asked, rubbing his back; he gripped her shirt, crying at the awful smelly sensation under his bottom. "Did someone make a stinky?" she asked as he continued to cry in response. "It's ok, mommy will make you feel better." she patted his back in comfort and walked to the nursery.**

**Gently the pink hedgehog released his hold on her and laid him down on the changing table, unbuttoning the pink sleeper he was wearing. Sonic whimpered as she cradled his face and wiped a tear; shushing him softly, she placed the paci back in his mouth. Whimpering still, he sucked as Amy undid the tapes and cleaned his bottom; after that, she laid him in a new diaper with dinosaurs on it, making sure his tiny tail poked out of the assigned hold and powdered. Tugging the front, she taped the sides and rebuttoned the sleeper, "There we go all better~!" Sonic smiled at her, feeling much better now that he was clean.**

**Gently she grabbed his feet and wiggled them, pretending to put them in her mouth, "Nom mom nom mom. I'm gonna eat your toes!" she teased with a growl. He giggled at the pink hedgehog towering over him and squirmed, trying to claim his feet back.**

**Their ears perked at the same time, hearing a door slam closed. Amy gasped, "Is that Daddy? Let's go see!" she whispered. Cradling the tiny blue blur, she tiptoed back to the living room, where they saw Shadow and Knuckles taking a seat on the couch. "Look who's back from his patrol!" Amy said, taking and waving his small hand.**

**Shadow turned his head back lazily, smiling, "Hey, Rose. Hiyya, there, squirt!" Sonic squeaked and made grabby hands to the ebony hog, "Come here, you." he groaned as Amy handed him the hoglet and returned to her laundry. "Did you miss me? Did you miss Daddy?" Shadow cooed, the hoglet squeaked and rubbed his nose against Shadow's. "Yes, Daddy missed his little blueberry too."**

**"Hey, aren't you gonna say hello to your uncle Knuckles?" the echidna pretended to pout dejectedly. Sonic blinked his emerald eyes and smiled, reaching out to the red echidna. Shadow handed him over, and Knuckles pulled him up, giving his nose a rub too in greeting. Knuckles then started to tickle the tiny hoglet; Sonic squealed and squirmed, giggling in the red giant's hands.**

**Knuckles laughed along as he tickle attacked his babyfied friend; Sonic kicked his legs wildly, laughing so hard tears were coming out of his eyes. Amy glanced over at the commotion, "Be careful, Knuckles. Sonic's delicate in this state, remember." she warned. "Don't worry, Ames. I won't torture him for too long, just long enough so he knows to not-uh..." Knuckles stopped when he looked down and noticed Sonic was no longer laughing instead, making a doopy face as he flooded his diaper. "Uh, oh."**

**"Knuckles! I just changed him." Amy moaned, "Don't worry, Rose, I'll take care of it. Come on, Knucklehead; it's about time you learned how to change a diaper." Knuckles wearily gazed back at the hoglet, who was sighing in relief. "Oh, boy," he muttered. "Ow ow ow!" He cried as Shadow tugged one of his locks, pulling him up and dragging the large echidna into the nursery.**

**Shadow pointed to the changing table, "Ok first step, secure the cargo."**

**"What?" Knuckles deadpanned. Shadow had to refrain from facepalming himself, "Put. the baby. on. the table." he enunciated, "Oh...why didn't you just say so?" Knuckles placed the blue blur down on his back. "Next, get the baby powder, wipes, and a new diaper." the echidna grabbed the supplies from under the table and placed them next to the hoglet, "Now, unbutton the sleeper, pull off the tapes and remove the dirty diaper." Knuckles quickly undid the sleeper, ripped off the tapes, and hastily yanked the diaper off under the little hedge.**

**Sonic and Shadow's eyes widened as the cold air suddenly hit his crotch, an involuntary yellow stream sprinkled toward the ebony hog and red echidna.**

**Both parties yelled and ducked for cover until it stopped. The little hedgehog felt bad for his accident but couldn't help but giggle at Shadow and Knuckles' reaction.**

**Shadow and Knuckles slowly stood back up, "Well, he's definitely a boy...forgot to tell you to do it slowly." Shadow quietly muttered. Knuckles glared at him, "Now what?" he growled. Shadow told him the next few steps, and Knuckles obeyed his instructions at a slower pace this time.**

**10 minutes and several wrong attempts on placing the new diaper later, they finally finished.**

**Sonic looked down and wiggled in his new padding, looking back up at the two and smiled in approval before his stomach growled, "Baba baba!" he squeaked. Shadow chuckled, picking up the hedgie and poked at his round belly, "Hungry Blueberry?" Sonic nodded, his stomach growling again. "Let's get you a nice bottle of milk, hm? Does that sound good?" he squeaked again happily, hugging the ebony hog as everything faded to black.**


	27. Chapter 27 The First Accident

Sonic stretched his toned muscles and rubbed the sleep dust from his eyes to another early morning. _Aw man, I was hoping I'd sleep in again. Oh well, the early Sonic catches the chili dog, I guess._ He removed the stuffed cheetah that had somehow moved to the top of his head during the night, placing it and the pacifier back in the box.

Jumping up, Sonic started his morning stretches. As he warmed up, his nose twitches, picking up an odd smell. Pausing, he lifted his arms and smelled himself, "Not me, though...whew I could use a shower." looking around, he sniffed the air again.

Following his nose, he looked down and saw a puddle underneath the hammock, "What the-?" He pulled his bed up to see a yellow puddle underneath. Eyes widening in horror, he looked back at his bed to see another yellow stain hanging over the same area. "Oh shit! What the hell?!"

Quickly he went to the cabinet underneath the tv set and pulled out a towel to soak up the urine; thankfully, it didn't stain the floorboards. "Great, just great." he mumbled, "Now I have to do laundry." laying the towel on the bed, he untied his hammock, wrapping it in a bundle. Bending down, he grabbed a bar of soap from the cabinet and carried his things outside to a nearby stream.

Quickly he washed the towel and hammock, hanging the two on empty branches to dry once he was finished.

Groaning, he apprehensively put the same bar of soap he had used on his laundry into his quills and glanced down at his crotch, the fur down there sticking out in weird directions—another reason to shower this morning.

He was grateful he had caught the incident before anyone else could have seen his little accident, so not cool and very embarrassing. As Sonic walked upstream, he wondered what had caused him to have the accident in the first place.

He had never ever wet the bed before. At least not to his memory. Thinking back to last night, he didn't recall using the restroom before going to bed,

"But I've done that plenty of times before and not have an accident."

The stream gradually widened to a small river and finally ended at a rippling pond with a waterfall pouring in gallons of freshwater from the snow-covered mountains on the island.

His personal and private watering hole. The pond was close to home yet secluded enough that if you weren't paying attention, you could easily miss it as towering trees and many bushes surrounded the watering hole. It was the perfect place for Sonic to bathe; he could take his time facing his fear long enough to get clean without anyone judging or bugging him. And the deepest part of the pond only reached his midsection.

Standing at the edge of the pond, he removed his clothes and cringed. No matter how often Sonic frequented, this spot it still took him several minutes to gather enough courage to take a brief dip.

Completely naked, the hydrophobic hedgehog dipped a toe into the water. It was cold. Shivering, he steeled his nerves, shaking away the anxiety in his hands. Slowly he walked in and wadded his way to the waterfall.

To keep his mind off the liquid surrounding him while he scrubbed up, Sonic thought back to the dream last night.

It had felt so oddly familiar like it had happened yesterday in real life. But that couldn't be. He was a baby in the dream, and his friends were all still the same age when interacting with him. A chill went down his spine mainly because of the cold water and remembering how Shadow was in the dream. The dark hog smiled the whole time and treated the blue blur like his own baby, playing and cuddling with him. Not at all like the moody, dark, and brooding hedgehog Sonic knew in real life, it left him feeling kind of unnerved.

Knuckles had been more or less the same. Amy was similar to how she usually was but more motherly.

He briefly considered that the dream had been the cause of his morning accident. But shook away the thought as that didn't seem plausible.

"Maybe I ate something that was a bit off yesterday? Wouldn't be too surprising. Meh Burger's food barely qualifies edible as is. Maybe I otta back off from eating there so much, and hopefully, this was just a one-time thing."

Thoroughly clean, Sonic waded back to shore and shook himself dry like a dog, his fur poofed out. Rapidly running his hands through his quills to downplay the volume, he put back on his gloves, socks, shoes, and bandana.

"Now!" he clapped his hands, putting aside his worries and focused on something more important "Time for some breakfast." crossing his arms, he tapped his foot, "I think there's a berry bush not too far from here..." relying on his old foraging skills, Sonic left the small waterfall in search of something tasty.

* * *

*Later that day*

Sonic strolled through the isles of the library, despite his carefree and cool dude rep. It was a little known fact that the speedy hedgehog liked to read.

A finger glided over the spines of the current section he was in. He stopped at a Burgandy spine painted with gold flowers, "King Arthur and The Knights of the Round Table." he smiled a bit and pulled the book from its spot. An old favorite of his, Sonic, flipped through the pages, wondering if he should take the book home with him. He had read the story so often, he knew it by heart, yet each time was like the first when he read the classic tale.

Closing the book, he put it back, maybe another time.

Leaving the fantasy section, he looked over the other fiction areas for something that would pique his interest. "Nope, nope, nope, boring, didn't like it, boring, nope, nope, ugh. Is there anything in here I haven't read?" he abruptly stopped at the next section. "Kid's Fiction," the bronze piece of metal said.

Sonic clicked his tongue; he hadn't been in this section yet. Maybe there was a story here that would be interesting? No one else was in the aisle. Walking in, he did the same as before, running a finger on the thinner and more colorful spines.

Eyes half-lidded in boredom, nothing looked the least bit appealing. Just a he was about to reach the end, he stopped and backed up a few steps, bending down; he pulled away one book. His emerald eyes widened in shock at the cover. He had seen it before. It was a picture of a humanoid robot holding a robotic hedgehog.

Sonic's thoughts ran faster than the speed of sound, searching for a seemingly lost memory. He could have sworn on his life he had read this book before. _This looks so familiar...but I've never read any children's books before._ Quickly he paged through its contents. _I remember the story and the pictures...why don't I remember actually reading it?_ Looking back at the rest of the books on the shelves, he examined each book nearby to see if perhaps he had read any other related stories in this section but didn't find anything.

Only the one in his hands seemed to call to him like an old friend, "Maybe if I reread it, I'll remember? It's gonna drive me crazy until then." he sighed, running a hand through his quills.

Sonic walked up to the check out counter with his book in hand; waiting in line, he impatiently tapped his foot. Only a few people were in front of him.

"Guess I'm not the only one who wanted to check out a book today." He mused.

A young walrus boy ran up to his mother, standing in front of the supersonic hedgehog in line. "Mom, mom! Can I get this book?" he asked excitedly, holding the book out to her, the walrus lady carrying a book of her own in one hand and her younger child in the other glanced over the cover and gave her approval. The young child thanked her, "You're gonna love this story, Chumley!" The baby peeked over his mother's shoulder, cooing at his sibling. The pacifier fell from his mouth.

Using his lightning reflexes, Sonic caught it before it touched the ground.

"Here you go, little buddy." he smiled, giving it back to Chumley; the baby walrus smiled back and popped the pacifier into his mouth and waved bye as the small family collected their books and left.

Sonic warmly smiled and waved when suddenly he froze, eyes widening in horror. _That was a pacifier... he thought. I-I-I-I sucked on a pacifier last night..._ An odd high pitched whine escaped from his lips, his eye twitched.

He felt like a total idiot for not recognizing that red object in the box from last night sooner and an even bigger fool for actually sucking on it in bliss like a baby.

"Excuse me, excuse me!"

"Hm, huh, who wha?!" Sonic stuttered, startled out of his shameful realization. The small beaver at the counter waving in front of him, annoyed by his quiet freakout, "I said, are you going to check out that book?"

"O-o-oh, yes, please." he flustered, handing the book to the librarian. The beaver scanned the book, then raised a skeptical eyebrow at him, "Aren't you a bit old for this kind of book?"

"Oh, it's not for me!" he waved both hands in a placating gesture before leaning over the counter and whispering, "It's for Knuckles. We're teaching him how to read."

"Ah, I see...well, it's about time that big bafoon learned about the benefits of the literary world!" Sonic took his book, hiding it in his quills, smiling through gritted teeth.

"Mhm, yup. Now, if you'll excuse me, we have a lesson in a few seconds, and I don't want to be late, bye!" Hastily he zoomed out of the building before anyone could question his reading choices further.

* * *

 _Why did I do that? I have nothing to be ashamed of. It's just a simple book._ Sonic shook his head walking down main street, _so what if the book was more directed to younger readers? Plenty of adults checked out books for juveniles. Course those adults were either parents or grandparents, not young bachelors._

His thoughts were cut off when a pink body waved excitedly, running towards him; he smiled a bit and waved back. "Sonic, Perfect timing. I could use your help!"

The blue hedgehog crouched into a battle position, "What is it Ames, Eggman? The Froglidites? ...Gogobas?" he smirked playfully. Amy narrowed her eyes, taking the hint. Getting into character, she looked around for any eavesdroppers before whispering in his ear, "Nope. Worse." his eyes widened, "Shadow's turned on us?"

"Mhm. Worse!" Sonic rubbed his chin, "Well, other than me turning bad. Which I don't think I have...what could be worse than that?"

"No groceries..." Sonic put one hand over his heart. Another covered his eyes as he dramatically moaned, "Oh, say it isn't so!" Amy nodded her head in shame, "I'm afraid so, there's no more food in my fridge." Sonic grabbed her arm and shook her not too much but just enough that she was struggling to make a straight face. "What do we do?! How will we survive without your cooking? All there is-is just, meh."

Now it was her turn to grab hold of his arms, "Get a hold of yourself! I have a plan, but I need your help."

"What is it? I'll do anything!" He begged, "We...are going...grocery shopping." the two hedgehogs stared into each other's eyes one pair emerald the other jade until they couldn't hold their serious expressions any longer and burst out laughing.

It was such a silly game they played with each other from time to time. Pretending something so mundane was a serious issue, and coming together to solve the problem in this case—the need for groceries.

Amy wiped a tear from her eye, "So wha day ya say?" she asked again for real this time. Sonic winked, "Sure! I'm not doing anything else right now." taking her hand, the two walked to the local market.

* * *

"Blugh." Sonic flicked at a green leafy stem of a carrot, wiping his hand on his chest as if to clean it of the vegetable's germs. "Do you have to get so much healthy stuff?" Amy picked up a tomato from a pile, squeezing it gently, "Un-like some people, I prefer a healthy balanced diet not filled with junk and fast food."

"My diet is balanced!"

"Uh-huh, so says the person who needs to be tricked into eating his veggies." satisfied by the fruit/ vegetables ripeness, she places it into the basket before walking to a line of freshly baked bread. "I like some veggies, just not all of them." he rebutted, "Oh yeah, I remember how much you loved my vegetarian chili dog recipe I made last week. Almost made yourself sick." she chuckled.

Sonic scratched his head. He didn't remember her making any vegetarian chili dogs. Something else he had forgotten, he shrugged. "Yeah, well, when don't I make myself sick with chili dogs? They're so good, and it's the king of food groups!"

"The King of food groups?" she scoffed, "Yeah, you got your: bread, meat, onions, garlic, beans, and dairy. What more could you need?!"

"How about some fruit? And a little variety?" he tsked at her, waggling a finger. "Those are simply suggestions to add to an already perfect diet." Amy rolled her eyes at him, "Ok, just don't come crying to me if you get scurvy." Sonic smirked, "Not this...hedge-hog..." his voice faded.

The two had turned into the candy aisle, and a rainbow of sweet treats bombarded Sonic's mind. He stopped in his tracks, gazing at them in wonder as only a child could do. Everything was color-coded, red licorice rope, purple gumdrops, gummy fish as blue as his fur, green taffy, and so much more surrounded him!

Amy, not hearing her male companion following her anymore, turned to see Sonic standing mouth open, slightly wide-eyed in the middle of the aisle, lost in the sea of sweets.

A small smile appeared on her muzzle; she had been worried that she would lose the connection the two had made after turning Sonic back to normal. And his recent behavior towards her seemed to validate that worry, but now she could see part of her little blue boy was still inside those big emerald eyes. The pink hedgehog walked beside him and waved a hand in front of his nose, "Hellooooo~ Sonic, you still here?"

He shook his head, "Huh, what? Oh, sorry, Ames." he apologized, glancing back to the candy; she giggled. "Would you like some?" Sonic looked at her, confused, "Some...what?"

"Candy!"

"Oh, um...s-sure. If you don't mind?" she waved her free hand around, "Go ahead and pick anything you like, but just one." he awkwardly smiled a bit and looked over the shelves. He chooses a large rainbow lollipop, "H-how bout this? It's not too much, right?"

"Anything for you, my little emerald~." she winked, making him blush. Sonic and Amy finished their shopping. He put the candy in his quills for later and insisted on dropping the food off at her place before joining the gang for lunch.

* * *

Sonic lounged in his outdoor hammock, watching the sunset in the distance as he sucked on his candy. The sun sparkled against the surf of the ocean. F _unny how something so beautiful can be so dangerous. Hmm, that sounds familiar...must have heard it from a movie or something._

Having his fill of the picturesque view, he pulled out the book he had checked out of the library earlier that day. Eyes narrowed, he examined the cover, searching for something in the back of his mind. It was there just on the tip of his tongue he could feel it...suddenly, a memory flashed in his mind.

He saw himself a smaller version sitting in someone's lap, following along with the story as that person read to him.

Sonic shook his head. A ghostly chill ran down his back, jaw, and book, dropping to his lap. "Wha-what?" he gurgled in bewilderment. His eyes darted back and forth. The blue hedgehog didn't know what to make of the image that just flashed in his mind; he looked back at the book in his lap, feeling very apprehensive now about reading it.

After several moments he pushed away his hesitation, opening the book he began reading.

This was probably the slowest Sonic had ever read a book. Although hating to do so, he wanted to take his time, hoping it would spark another memory. One that was clearer.

He carefully read each sentence and examined each picture. 30 minutes later, he finished the book. He was left with only one image in his head, still at a loss with no answers to his questions. Sonic rubbed his chin in thought. _Who was that person reading to me? Why don't I remember this book before? Am I just having a major deja vu moment?_ Snapping his fingers, he huffed and bonked himself on the head.

"Silly me, that's got to be it! Just a major case of deja vu. I was just getting worked up over nothing." lightly laughing at himself, Sonic rested his hands behind his quills, closing his eyes, and shifted to get more comfortable. _There was nothing to worry about, absolutely nothing._ He didn't speculate any longer, filing the weird picture as not worth remembering as he went to sleep. Ignoring the beginning of a knot of foreboding forming in his gut.


	28. Chapter 28 Uncle Knux

**"Come on, higher Kux! Higher! Higher! Hahaha!" Knuckles tossed the giggling blue hedgehog again with ease, Sonic's gloved hands brushed against the palm leaves as he rose in the air. "Can you reach the top yet?" Knuckles yelled, "Almost!" Sonic replied.**

**They were playing their favorite game," Catch the Little Coconut" the goal was for Knuckles to toss Sonic high enough to touch the top of the trees or the highest coconut with the least amount of tosses. Their record so far was 10 tosses. They were going for 9 this time.**

**"Ok, how many does that make it?" Knuckles puffed, catching the blue hedgehog, "7. We got two more tosses."**

**"Alright, here we-"**

**"Sonic the Hedgehog! Knuckles the Echidna! What on Mobius do you two think you're doing!?" Amy's voice screeched, startling the two. They looked at her like deer's caught in the headlights and feeling like a pair just before getting hit by a speeding car as Amy briskly stomped toward them. Placing her fists on her hips, she glared at the boys in disappointment. "Well?"**

**"Uhhhh... it's not what it looks like?" Knuckles grinned sheepishly, "So I didn't just catch you two playing that game I've told you repeatedly not to play?"**

**"Nooooo~." Sonic sang, "Uh, huh." Amy huffed dryly. "You two are so busted. Come on." she took Sonic from Knuckles' arms into hers and firmly grabbed him by the arm, pulling the echidna back to her house. "I've told you and told you not to play that game, but do you listen no. Instead, you go behind my back."**

**"Come on, Amy..." Knuckles whined, "It's not that big a deal!"**

**"It is so a big deal!" anger rising. Amy roughly pushes the large echidna onto the couch, as Sonic tried to make himself smaller in her hold. The pink hedgehog was on the tipping point of being mad to furious; beneath that soft girly pink exterior was an active volcano just waiting to erupt. And he was a little too close for comfort to the boiling lava, a.k.a. her pummeling hammer.**

**"Not only could you hurt Sonic playing that ridiculous game, but you are also setting a bad example going behind my back and lying to me!"**

**"What do you mean? Sonic's the one who suggested it, don't yell at me. Yell at him!" He argued, pitting the blame on the blue blur. Knuckles wasn't the only one wanting to escape the wrath of Amy's hammer.**

**"He doesn't know any better, Knuckles. He's just a baby. That's why it's our responsibility to keep him safe and set a good example. Including you." She now looked at the blue hedgehog in her arms, "As for you, mister...you are getting a time out for being a bad boy."**

**"Are you serious! That's all he gets?! Talk about setting a good example of being soft." he mumbled under his breath.**

**Sonic's fur rose, feeling the temperature in the room drop as Amy stiffened,**

**"What did you just say?" she asked quietly. Knuckles shrank into the couch cushions trying to disappear, realizing he had just nailed the last nail in his coffin, "I s-said you were setting a good example on being *gulp* soft?" he squeaked.**

**Taking in a deep breath and letting it out, Amy calmly placed Sonic in a chair facing the corner. He said a silent prayer thanking Chaos for Knuckles' stupidity and his regression for saving him. Pinning his ears back and making sure to keep his eyes on the corner, Sonic braced himself for what was coming next.**

_**BAM!** _

**"WHAT DO YOU MEAN SOFT?! Is this soft enough for Ya?!**

_**BAM!** _

**He couldn't help but cringe each time the smack of her piko piko hammer came down; Sonic was grateful he was stuck in the corner and not in Knuckles' place. It was not a pleasant position to be in.**

**After a few more hits, Amy settled down, feeling the echidna had had enough of his punishment, and got the message. Putting her weapon back in hammerspace, she walked back to Sonic, sitting deathly quiet in the corner, "I don't want to see your diapered butt out of that chair for 10 minutes, got it?" he nodded quickly in submission. "And as for you..." she pointed to a lump of red on the couch, "Make sure he stays there until time is up or else," she emphasized the last part with her fist. Knuckles nodded quickly, as well.**

**"Good. I'll check back with you in a bit." she chirped, and with that, the pink hedgehog left the two to sulk and think about their behavior.**

**Knuckles blew out a breath he had been holding and gingerly touched his pecs, hissing when it burned. He was going to be bruising badly tomorrow. Sonic turned his face to his friend emerald eyes filled with sympathy. He had been on the receiving end of Amy's hammer more times than he could possibly count in the past and understood precisely how Knuckles was feeling right now.**

**Turning his attention away from his tender spots, Knuckles looks up to see Sonic starting at him, "What are you looking at, little trouble maker?" he hissed. "Sorry," he whispered. "Yeah, well, you should be." Knuckles snipped back, crossing his arms, "Snot fair, I got hit while you just sit in the corner."**

**The hedgehog sheepishly looked aside, "Yeah, I know. But would you really have let Amy hit me while I'm like this?" Knuckles didn't say anything. Slowly a smirk grew on his face, and he chuckled, "No...I guess not. I wouldn't want her to make you cry." Sonic flinched, "Tsk, I-I wouldn't have cried!" he whisper yells. "Yeah, you would be sobbing like the little baby you are about your boo-boos. Then Amy would have hugged and kissed you cause she loooooves her blue baby so much!" Knuckles crooned, clasping his hands and swinging his arms back and forth, holding an imaginary baby all the while Sonic's ears and cheeks burned, turning bright red pouting.**

**"I wouldn't have cried," he grumbled. Knuckles snickered, pleased with himself for making the blue blur blush. A small smile appears on Sonic's face as the blush fades, happy that his friend was in better spirits now.**

**He started making funny faces, each more ridiculous than the last; Knuckles burst out laughing, almost roaring his bruising forgotten at the moment.**

**Suddenly a high-pitched voice rose, silencing them, "You two better be behaving in there!" lips firmly clamped shut. They looked anywhere but at each other for several minutes in silence.**

**"Hey!" Knuckles whispered; Sonic looked back at his friend curiously, not wanting to get themselves in any more trouble; he mouthed a 'what?' at him. Knuckles pulled the lower lip of his eye down and stuck out his tongue; Sonic put a hand over his mouth and snickered along with his red friend.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *I'm taking a small break (2 weeks to a month, depending on how busy I am) to finish writing/editing the rest of this story. So far, we are two-thirds through the story, so the ending is coming close. I can't wait to hear what ya'll think of it.
> 
> In the meantime, to help keep you occupied, I've uploaded some drawings of some scenes in the story to my deviant art page. If you'd like to take a look, here's the link: theeccentricnomad/gallery/75817605/ssd-pictures
> 
> or you can check out my Wattpad: user/TheEccentricNomad
> 
> I've got some more ideas for more ABDL Sonic stories; when this story is finished, I'll get to work on those asap!
> 
> Thank you all so much for your comments and likes/hearts/kudos, depending on where you're reading this from, I've immensely enjoyed reading them, and I will see ya'll soon!*


	29. Chapter 29 Picnic

Sonic awoke with a start to an annoying beeping screaming in his ears. Groaning, he flopped onto his stomach; sleepy eyes narrowed, staring at nothing. His mind contemplated how to kill an alarm clock effectively. The alarm continues to beep as he stretches before turning his wrist to see the light flashing on his communicator, "This had better be an emergency." he grumbled to himself, answering the call with a slur. "Yeah..."

"Woah, somebody sounds grumpy this morning!" the voice on the line teased, "Yeah, I think anybody would be when they're woken up at...8:30 in the morning? Ok, not an unreasonable hour, but Shadow, why are you, of all people, calling me? It's a little early, even for Eggman," he questioned, sitting up and rolling his shoulders to wake up a little more as he listens for the other's reply. "Rose insisted I call to remind you of the picnic we're having this afternoon. She is, and I quote,' too busy' to do something as simple as picking up the phone and calling you herself."

"What's she so busy doing?"

"Oh, you know the usual...picking ingredients from the garden, roping me into helping her, fretting over what outfit to wear, all the while cooking every recipe she has under the sun." Sonic let out a small chuckle. Classic Amy always overdoing even the smallest of things with that all-business attitude of her's. "Yup, that sounds like Amy alright, better you helping her than me. I'd just make a big mess and make things worse."

"Hmph!" came a rough grunt on the other line, "That's true. You can barely make a chili dog without turning the whole kitchen into a mess, speaking of which I better get back to helping Rose with this dish before it's burned to a crisp. See ya at 12, blueberry." he hung up before Sonic could say anything more.

The blue hedgehog scoffed, "Stuck-up emo hog. I don't make that much of a mess." ruffling his quills and popping his back as he rose from the hammock. Eyes shot up as a thought suddenly occurred to him. Quickly Sonic turned and looked under the bed, sighing in relief, seeing nothing on the floor this time. "Thank Chaos." he smiled, "Just a one-time freak accident." standing back to his full height, Sonic pulled his arm across his chest, gently tugging his shoulder muscles.

Eyes lazily drifted around the house as he warmed the rest of his muscles. He spotted a relatively thick layer of dust resting on the tv. Looking closer, he noticed that the dust didn't stop there; the whole shack was covered in the stuff as if he had been gone for several weeks. "Man, this place is dusty. I've got a couple of hours before the picnic. I'll whip this place into shape, then grab a bite and hang out, a.k.a. run till then." Nodding to this good idea, Sonic set to work.

* * *

*Several hours later*

Sonic walks up the hill to the picnic area, arms relaxed behind his spiky quills. The afternoon sun warming his cobalt fur and a light wind stirring the air, "Another picture-perfect day in paradise." he sighed with a smile.

Reaching the top, he waves to Tails and Knuckles. "Hey, Little Blue! You made it!" Knuckles greets, pulling the hedgehog close and giving him a noogie. Alarmed at the surprise noogie, Sonic yelps and quickly tears himself away, while Tails cheekily says something about payback with a hushed voice in the background.

The speedster blushes, feeling self-conscious. Recalling his interaction with the echidna in his dreams last night, making him feel little for a brief moment. Sonic brushes himself and the odd sensation off, placing a hand on his hip. "Course I made it! And no comments about me being late. I'm fashionably late, and I plan for so those, so they don't count!"

"Amy called to remind you, didn't she?" Tails asks smugly; Sonic crossed his arms, pouting, "No! She did not...it was Shadow." he whispered the last part.

Suddenly a bright light flashed, blinding the trio for a few seconds, "Somebody say my name?" Shadow asks, carrying a large folded blanket."Yeah, Shadow, we were just talking about you!" Sonic's pout disappearing as a mischievous idea forms in his mind, "Oh really? Something about my good looks?" the dark hog puffs up his chest and shakes his quills in pride.

"Not quite, " Sonic's face morphs into a shit-eating grin, walking up to his rival. Tails mentally facepalms himself. He knows that look Sonic makes before he does something stupid; he prayed that there would be no bloodshed this time.

"Hmmm, were you perhaps talking about how smart I am? Or maybe about how better I am in general compared with the rest of you?" Shadow asks again, playing along with the act, watching Sonic beginning to circle him like a hunter with its prey. He knows Sonic is up to something. _Probably trying to egg me on and start a fight. Well, if it's a fight he wants, it's a fight he'll get._

"Nope. Guess again!"

"My...incredible Chaos abilities which make me faster than you could ever be?" Sonic winced on that comment, "Oh so so far off, Shads." he sadly tsked, "No, we were talking about how horrible your cooking is, tastes like barf." Sonic preceded to exaggerate by sticking a finger down his throat and gag, "And also how pathetic those few white hairs on your chest that your call fluff are. Really! I mean, there's barely anything there," Sonic stops in front of Shadow, smiling widely, making sure he was positioned well into punching range. Squinting his eyes, adjusting some invisible glasses on his nose, he leaned precariously forward. "I mean, come on, you'd need a powerful set of specks just to count them."

Instantly a first is thrown into Sonic's gut sending him backwards into the ground. "How dare you make insulting remarks on my fluff when you don't have any of your own. Truly you are a mockery to all hedgehog kind for your lack of fluff, and for that...you shall perish!"

The smile previously on Sonic's face is wiped away, focusing on his opponent. He pulls back, kicking his legs into the air knocking Shadow over. Taking this opportunity while the ebony hog is down, Sonic leaps onto Shadow's back and pulls him into a headlock.

Growling, Shadow grimaces then smiles before he pushes up and flips the hog making Sonic release his hold. Now laying on his back, Sonic quickly grabs hold of Shadow's hands just before they reach him. "You're going to pay for that hedgehog." Shadow hisses, "Make me!" Sonic spats kicking Shadow off him again, and jumps to his feet into a battle stance. Shadow, still on the ground, grabs a handful of dirt and sprays it into Sonic's face. He cries, rubbing the offending grit in his eyes, stepping back and plummets down again, tripping over a well-placed foot. "That's dirty!"

"Oh, I'm sorry, here, let me help." Shadow then jumps up, keeping one arm folded, aiming his elbow to land right into the blue hero's gut.

At this point, Amy appears on the scene, shifting her eyes to Tails and Knuckles back to the two hogs tussling and wrestling on the ground. As they watched the fight, Amy moans, exasperated, "How long have they been at it this time?"

"Huh? Oh hey Amy, um, not long, maybe a couple of minutes."

The pink hedgehog nodded and put two fingers in her mouth, letting out a loud whistle. The two hogs freeze in their positions. Sonic was on Shadow's back, riding him like a horse, biting an ear while having a fist pulled back aimed for the face. While Shadow was on his knees, keeping himself steady with one hand while having one arm locked around Sonic's left leg. An overall awkward pose, the duo found themselves in.

The two slowly looked up to see Amy standing before them wearing peach flats, a flowy white dress with matching hat holding, and a large picnic basket. The outfit was very flattering for her, except for the irritated expression she was wearing on her face that said 'they were trying her patience.' "Ahem! If you two are done playing around, how about helping setting things up, hmmm?"

Not wasting a millisecond, the hedgehogs scrambled out of each other's hold. Sonic grabbed the blanket, unfolding and spreading it neatly over the grass while Shadow took the basket from Amy and, in a whirlwind, laid out all of the food. Tails made a whip lashing sound effect with his mouth winking at Amy; she quietly giggled and shook her head. Setting her hands on her hips. Amy smiled and nodded in approval at the two standing before her silently when they finished. "Nicely done, boys..." she spotted a clump of dirt on Sonic's shoulder from their scuffle and flicked it off.

Sonic rolled his eyes, keeping a hand on his stomach still hurting from the body slam Shadow gave him a few minutes ago; he'd have to go about eating slowly so as not to upset the bruised organ. Though peeking in his peripheral, Shadow also was nursing the ear he had bitten in retaliation, the corner of Sonic's mouth twinged upward. His ears perked when Amy clapped her hands, grabbing everyone's attention, "Now let's eat!"

* * *

Rubbing his slightly distended belly in content, Sonic relaxed onto the soft grass sunbathing in the afternoon rays. He had made a pig out of himself on all the food Amy and Shadow had cooked up. Rubbing his nose, he chuckled to himself. _Shadow sure wasn't kidding when he said Ames was make'n every recipe in the book. I think I made a pretty good dent. And those chili dogs, man, those were so good!_

Amy had provided everything from her vegi chili dogs, fresh woodland salad, grilled fish, cheese and nut platter, fruit salad, and homemade lemonade, to a chocolate mint cheesecake to finish it off. Everyone had eaten their fill and were now following the example of their blue leader, relaxing their bodies and minds to digest.

Eyes half-lidded, Sonic smiled lazily in bliss, watching the clouds go by in the sky as blue as his fur while Shadow and Amy made themselves comfortable on either side of him. "So how was it?" she asked, laying on her side, head resting in her hand; he twitched an ear in Amy's direction, "How was what?"

"The food, of course!" she reminded, giving him a teasing flick on the head, "Oh yeah, awesome!" Sonic made a chef kiss and patted his belly, "In case you didn't notice, I happened to have plenty of experience as a food critic. And I must say that was some of your best work, chef Amy." Shadow crouched beside him hmphed; Sonic turned to send a wink to the grouchy hog. "And you did good too, chef Shadow." the dark hog grunted again, this time with a smirk.

Grinning, Sonic turned his attention back to the sky and yawned, feeling very comfortable and at ease. Breathing in slowly, letting the sun's warmth lull him, he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Had a good hiatus, I hope?
> 
> Welp, we're in the home stretch now for this fic. Thank you for being patient with me. If you're re-reading this story, you may have noticed I made some changes while taking a break, nothing big, just some small adjustments to make things a bit more clear and easier to read (not that anyone else but me will notice). Things had kinda gone crazy on my end; changed work schedules, the workload increased big time cause covid is going crazy where I live (I work at a hospital if that gives you an idea), my mom got covid, got a new puppy, and it's been snowing for the past two days! Woah!
> 
> Thankfully things are starting to slow down.
> 
> The last few weeks of this story will be a bit of an emotional ride, so, until the next chapter, happy reading!


	30. Chapter 30 Groceries

**The hoglet waddled to the kitchen pulling his little toy car by the string, the headlights blinking every few steps. Sonic poked his head around the corner to see Amy standing by the sink, talking into her communicator. He could tell by her tense posture and strained voice that something was up.**

**"You have got to be kidding me! Sigh...is there any possible way you could stop and pick up a few things for me?"**

**"As much as I would love to drop this ridiculous mess and do a mindless errand, I can't. You'll just have to wait or figure it out yourself." a low voice on the other side growled, "Alright, thanks anyway." she hung up, laying her head in her hand, muttering. "Great..."**

**Worried that something was wrong with his pink friend, Sonic let go of the string, forgetting his toy and staggered to the stressed hedgehog. He tugs on her leggings to get her attention. "Hmm? Oh hey, baby, what is it?" she asks tiredly, "What's wrong?" he signs. "What?" Amy asks, confused.**

**(Although Sonic and Shadow had been giving her sign language lessons recently to communicate with the blue blur while in baby form, she only knew a few signs and her ABC's.)**

**"What's w-r-o-n-g? Mama Dada n-e-e-d help?" he fingerspelled slowly, making sure his fingers were correctly shaped and clear for her. "Oh, um... well, I was just asking Shadow if he could pick up a few things we need," she replies, bending down to pick up the hoglet. "But he and Knuckles are stuck helping the Gogobas with something." Sonic rolled his eyes, "Yeah, I know. Those guys are more of a pain in the butt than Eggman." he nodded, agreeing with her. "What n-e-e-d?"**

**"Unfortunately, there are a few things I really need to get from the market. Shadow and Knuckles are stuck with the Gogobas, and Tails is working, so that means I have to go and get the supplies myself." he shrugged, asking,' so what's the problem?'**

**"That means you have to go with me. I can't leave you here by yourself." Sonic frowned, "W-a-i-t t-o-m-o-r-r-o-w?"**

**"No, it can't. I need these things today." He whimpered, not liking the idea of having to go out in his current state. He didn't want anybody in the village to see their blue protector as a vulnerable little baby. It was embarrassing enough being this way around his friends, though he was getting over that, but having total strangers, villains, and criminals catching wind of his condition would surely bring bad news.**

**"D-don't worry!" Amy smiled reassuringly, "I have a plan so that no one will recognize you." he cocked his head to the side. "Luckily, I bought the perfect outfit just in case something like this happened!" She chirped, touching his nose with hers briefly, and walked with him into the nursery expertly sidestepping the toys scattered along the hallway.**

**Setting him on the changing table, she quickly went to the dresser and picked out something blue. It was almost the same shade of blue as Sonic's fur but slightly darker. "I got this little costume on sale. What do you think?" Amy asks, revealing the outfit was a cat costume. It was much like his footie pajamas but had a long tail attached and a hoodie to cover his quills, complete with cat ears. He looks over the outfit, skeptical if this would fool anyone, "Trust me, this will work." Amy says as if she could read his thoughts.**

**Gently pushing him down, she gets to work fitting Sonic into the costume.**

* * *

**Pulling the hoodie over his head, she clasps her hands and cooes, "Ooohh aren't you just the most adorable little thing!" the hedgehoglet blushes looking away. "This is just too cute! I have to take a picture. Here Sonic, come on, look at the camera and smile for Mommy!" she points a little camera on the communicator at him. He looks back up, the blush still on his cheeks with a baby smile, making him look even more babyish.**

**CLICK!**

**Amy squeals hopping up and down, "SO CUTE! Yes, your just the cutest wittle hedge! Yes, you are!" She continues to coo, tickling her fingers at him, and rubs her nose with his. Sonic giggles falling back. "Alright, my little emerald. Let's get moving."**

* * *

**Quietly sucking on his paci Sonic shifted his head away from Amy's chest just enough to see his surroundings.**

**They were currently standing in a random aisle at the grocery store; Amy was looking for something on the shelf while he was secure in the baby carrier facing her and hiding in plain sight.**

**Sonic nervously glanced down the aisle behind them; no one else was there. That was good, and so long as he kept his facing his Mommy, no one would see his face and suspect that it was him.**

**"Hey, Amy!"**

**Silently gasping, Sonic quickly hid his face again.**

**Amy jumped startled. She turned to see a female yellow fox waving and walking towards her. She sweatdropped, feeling guilty for allowing herself to get distracted and not keeping her guard up. There was no escape; leaving now would be suspicious. Amy quickly looked around to make sure no one else was watching, so long as she kept her cool and Sonic continued to stay hidden, no one would be the wiser.**

**Taking a calming breath, she tried to act normal, "Hey Zooey! What's up?"**

**"What's up? You practically dropped off the face of the earth for the last few weeks! Where have you been? I haven't seen any of the gang except for Knuckles and Shadow. What's going on?" the fox asked worriedly, "Oh, it's nothing! Eggman's just not done anything recently, so we've all been taking a bit of a vacation." Amy waved her hands casually. "What about the other two?" Zooey asks.**

**"Shadow and Knuckles? Oh, they volunteered to keep watch of the village to make sure nothing happens so we could relax."**

**"Oh, well. I'm glad you guys are ok. What's with the baby, by the way?" she pointed to Sonic, who started to shiver, feeling Zooey's piercing gaze on his back. He dearly wished Amy would hurry up and finish this conversation before his cover was blown.**

**"Oh, I-I just started doing a little babysitting." the fox bent down slightly, "Aww, they seem shy, hey little one, can I see your face and say hello~?" Sonic whimpered, shaking his head 'no.' Zooey frowned, disappointed, "You don't want to say hi?"**

**"Come on; it's ok. No one is around. It's just Zooey. I think she'll keep our secret safe." Amy whispered, encouraging him with a soft nudge. Sonic hesitated, he was sure that Amy was right in that the female fox wouldn't gossip, but he still felt unsafe, exposing himself in public even a little bit. With her reassurance, he slowly showed his face to the fox, who was patiently waiting. "Oh my gosh! Hello, little one! Wow! Look at those beautiful eyes of yours. Why did you want to hide them away from me, you silly thing." the hoglet blushed at the compliment and shyly smiled behind the pacifier in thanks.**

**"Amy, could I?" Zooey asked timidly, holding her hands out, "Sure! Just be gentle with him."**

**_What?!_ Sonic's eyes widen in alarm as Amy pulls him out of the carrier and puts him into the fox's arms, whimpering; he reaches out for Amy, "mama mama mama."**

**"It's ok, Sonic. Just let her hold you for a minute." he looks up at the fox warily, allowing her to cradle him gently but looks fixedly back to Amy, half afraid she'll leave without him. "Did you just call the baby Sonic?"**

**"Yeah...ya see..." Amy leans into Zooey's ear, whispering, "Sonic had a little accident; this is just a costume." she discreetly pulls the hoodie down just enough to allow Zooey to see his quills. "Oh my goodness, you poor thing!" the fox gasps hugging the hoglet, "When did this happen?!"**

**"A few weeks ago, but don't worry!" Amy waves her hands, "He still has all his memories and everything. He's just stuck as a baby until Tails finishes working on a cure for him."**

**"I see...is there anything I can do to help?" she asks, looking at both hedgehogs in pity, "Not really, just keep this under wraps, ok? We don't want to cause a scene." Zooey nodded, "Right, I understand." smiling down at Sonic; she gave him back to Amy. "We wouldn't want anything to happen to our cute brave blue hero, now would we." she bopped his nose. Happy to be back with his Mommy, Sonic smiled at the fox and squeaked in thanks. "You're welcome. Well, I'll see you two around. Bye!"**

**"Bye!" Amy and Sonic waved as she left, then breathed out in relief, "See, I told you everything was gonna be ok." he looked up at Amy and cooed, nodding; she pats him on the head. "Since you were a good little boy, I'll let you pick out whatever treat you like. Just hold on a little longer, and we'll be all done." The hoglet smiled widely and squeaked cutely, making her giggle. "Oh, Sonic...Sonic...SOnic...SONic...SONIc...SONIC!"**


	31. Chapter 31 Ugh Eggman Again

Amy smiled warmly, watching over the blue blur who had made himself comfortable cuddling along her side, sucking his thumb, ear twitching every so often while he napped. Looking up, jade eyes matched ruby, "Still our baby." she says softly while gently petting Sonic's head.

Shadow nods; he pulls the blue blur's bandana down, annoyed not to see the pacifier they had given him hidden underneath. "I thought I told him specifically to keep that pacifier with him to use so he wouldn't suck his thumb." Shadow lowly growled in irritation. "He may have wanted to keep it at home; it's more likely to be spotted if he had it with him all the time. Besides, I don't think Sonic knows he sucks his thumb in his sleep." Amy whispers.

Shadow grunts and twists around to see Tails fiddling with his Miles electric while Knuckles was having a staring contest with a rock. Shaking his head, Shadow turned his attention to the view in the distance. The atmosphere all around was calm and pleasant, and spending this time with his newfound family seemed to enhance that feeling.

If only it would last.

Shadow's ears perked to a faint humming. Rotating them, he listened to the strange sound. "Do you hear that?" Amy asks; he nods distractedly while searching for the origin. Finally, Shadow looks up into the sky locating the source in the distance. "Looks like we have some pests coming to interrupt our picnic," he says dryly. Amy raises as brow and looks in the direction the black hog faces to see a familiar floating round object heading their way.

"Wake blueberry up. I'll alert the others." Shadow ordered, jumping to his feet, and dashed to their companions. Amy shook Sonic repeatedly, calling his name; the hedgehog moaned blearily, in confusion as he awoke from his food-induced coma. "Wha's goin' on?" he yawned.

"It's Eggman, " Amy replied, helping Sonic up, "and he's brought with him some back-up." the blue blur scoffed, shaking the drowsiness away.

"When doesn't he have one or more of his toys with him? S'bout time he showed up! Things were starting to get a little boring around here." he chuckled slightly before settling into a battle position with a smirk growing on his muzzle. Time for some action! Sonic thought before jumping into battle with his team.

It took no time for the group to demolish and destroy Eggman's robots and ruin his plans. A few minutes later, Team Sonic was pounding down the last few bots.

"Grrrr! I'll get you next time, you insolent little hedgehog!" Eggman yelled, retreating to his fortress, "Catch ya later, Eggypoo!" Sonic called back. The hedgehog abruptly froze, a crooked smile twitching on his muzzle.

"Eggypoo?! Haha, hahaha!" he busted out laughing. He had no idea where that ridiculous nickname had come from, but he thought it was hysterical!

Tails and Knuckles laughed also; Amy and Shadow were unsuccessfully trying to hide their snickering at the insulting nickname, unlike the individuals around them busting a gut like immature children. "W-where hahaha-,did you come up with that?" Tails asks, calming down, wiping a tear away, "I don't know it just...came to me, haha-Ouch!" Sonic shouted, face twisting in discomfort when he felt a sharp bolt of pain run down his right leg.

Lifting it gingerly, he looks down. Shocked to see a long cut running down his calf, leaving some of his sports bandages ripped off. The rush of adrenaline masking any pain during the battle. Unfortunately, it was now wearing off, and an increasing amount of throbbing was alerting him to the damage. He grimaces at the wet sticky blood oozing out.

Amy gasps, hearing his cry of pain, quickly running to him, "Let me see that!" she says firmly, bending down to take a closer look. "Ames, cool it. It's just a little scratch."

"That scratch is bleeding heavily and is almost as long as your leg. We need to get this fixed! You could have cut a major artery! And if it gets any bigger, you'll need stitches."

"Amy, would you quit worrying. It's fine. It just needs a little cleaning up, and I can still walk, see?" He tries not to wince as he puts his foot back down, taking a step with the injured appendage to show her everything was alright. But his ears folded back, giving him away; Amy crosses her arms, unamused, "Amy's right. That looks pretty bad." Tails comments. "Listen to them, Sonic." Shadow steps up behind the blue hedgehog. "Guys, seriously, it's no big deal. I've had way worse injuries than this."

Shadow sighs, pinching his brow; as usual, his former rival was going to make this more challenging than it should be. Sonic always plays off his injuries like they didn't exist, to the extreme at times; they were going to have to restrain the stubborn hog to help him.

Shadow sent a look to the group, and they all nodded in understanding, some a little more quickly than others, and surrounded the blue blur closing all means of escape.

Sonic's eyes widen warily, gazing at his friends, realizing what they were planning to do to him. Normally he would have sped off and fled the scene before they even took a step, but this hedgehog was no dummy despite his somewhat immature behavior. He knew that he wouldn't get very far with an injury as serious as this despite insisting to his friends that he was perfectly fine.

Sonic cowers slightly, holding his hands out as if to shield himself from the oncoming attack, "Guys...no. Don't, don't you dare!"

"Now!" Shadow signals. Sonic screeches in surprise, covering himself as his friends pounce on him collectively.

After some protesting and fierce struggling, Sonic found his arms and legs pinned together in Knuckles' tight hug. He wriggles and grunts in frustration. "Let me go!"

"Sorry, Sonic, it's for your own good," Amy says. Tearing off the end of her dress, she wraps the fabric around his leg as a temporary bandage to stop the bleeding. It would do the job until they got home, where Amy had the proper medical equipment. "Come on, guys, let's go to my place so I can get our little emerald fixed up." Amy waves for them to follow her back home with their prisoner.

Knuckles grins down to the squirming mass of blue fur in his arms, "Looks like you get a free ride on the Knuckles express! Chu chu!" Sonic turns red, feeling very tiny after hearing Amy calling him 'little emerald' while being carried by Knuckles; he doesn't have the faintest idea why he has this reaction, though.

Sonic increases his struggling getting angrier and angrier. He looked like a toddler having a temper tantrum. "I don't want a ride; I want to run. Now let me go, Knux!" he yells behind gritted fangs. "Sorry, no can do, bud." Knuckles shakes his head, not fazed in the slightest with the hedgehog's fit,

"Remember the last time I did what you told me? Amy whacked me so hard I had bruises for days. But I can make you more comfortable..."

Knuckles shifts his hold of the hedgehog, moving a spiky quilled head to rest on his shoulder while keeping a firm grip on his arms and bottom, allowing Sonic's legs to fall freely along his ripped sides. Green eyes widen as Sonic recognizes his position as one used by a mother to carry an unruly toddler. "Don't hold him like that! That will just make the bleeding and pain worse! You need to keep his legs up." Tails sternly points out, "Oh, is this better?" Knuckles asks, moving Sonic again, this time into a cradling position keeping his legs high in the air.

Tails nods in approval, "Much better." Sonic's face turns even redder. He tries to say something but ends up silent, opening and closing his mouth like a fish. This position was even worse than the previous, and it didn't help that every time he struggled, Knuckles would press Sonic closer to his chest. He started to sweat and whimper inaudibly when his face was so squished to the point he could hear Knuckles heart beating steady against his own racing heart pumping in his ears.

The voice of freedom screamed for Sonic to punch the echidna, holding him hostage, in the jaw and make a dash for it. Damn the consequences! But that wasn't right. His friends were only trying to help him after all, and something else was holding him back. Another voice told him that something about this was right and to not fight it. Besides being slightly squished, he was comfortable.

With a groan, Sonic gave up fighting the situation. There was no point when the strongest person he knew was keeping him like this. His thoughts strayed at this point, puzzling how someone with the strength to lift a boulder 3 times his weight could also keep him restrained without unintentionally squeezing the life out of the hedgehog like Amy had done to him in the past. Perhaps, in the same way, he could blast off at the speed of sound in seconds yet still be able to stop on a dime at will?

As the group made their way back homewards at a steady pace, Shadow glanced over to the confined hedgehog in concern. Noticing Sonic had given up his efforts to break out and had also oddly enough gone quiet during the last few minutes. He smirked, seeing Sonic acting like he was steamed over his current predicament but could see a small gleam in those emerald eyes indicating he was secretly enjoying the ride.

"Just great..." Amy whined, tugging the remains of her dress, examining several holes in the white fabric, "I'll have to change again, and Eggman ruined my favorite dress. That fat ass is totally gonna pay next time I see his face!" she exclaimed, shaking her fists. Sonic snickered, and Shadow couldn't stop his shoulders from moving a bit in amusement at the pissed off hedgehog.

Chaos have mercy on Eggman's soul.

* * *

"Sit!" Amy commanded, shoving the blue hedgehog onto the couch, then turned to Tails, asking sweetly. "Tails could you get me some water and a few small cloths, please?" The fox nodded, making haste, heading into the bathroom for the requested items.

Amy sat in front of Sonic's legs and pulled out a first aid kit hidden underneath the couch; opening the box, she picked out the items needed to fix the hedgehog's wound. Tails returns and hands her the cleaning supplies as she finished setting up, nodding in thanks.

"Now, hold still and bear with me while I clean you up." Sonic shrugged in annoyance, pointedly looking away, pouting and mumbling under his breath about how the whole thing was unnecessary. She ignored the grumbling hedgie and got to work; removing the makeshift bandage, she saw clotted blood covering the cut. _Good, that means it's already healing._

Sonic closed his eyes, making sure his expression was as emotionless as possible, ignoring the flickering flutter in his heart as Amy worked. An image of himself bouncing on Amy's lap in a diaper and holding a rattle flashed in his mind. He shook his head, blinking in puzzlement; where had that come from?

Once the cut was sufficiently clean, Amy applied some alcohol onto another cloth, "This will sting a bit." she warned before gently dabbing his leg. Sonic couldn't stop a yelp from escaping before shutting his mouth; his leg jerked lightly in reaction when the cloth made contact. _Chaos that stings!_

"Oh, suck it up, Ya big baby." Tails snarked at the hedgehog's poor attempts to hide his pain, sitting at the dining table. Sonic sent a deadly glare the fox's way and stuck out his tongue; Tails sighed, rolling his eyes. The tables truly had turned on who was the little and big brother now.

While the two brothers were engaged in their silent bickering making faces at each other, Amy finished wrapping Sonic's leg with proper bandages." There all better!~" she sang, kissing his leg, interrupting the brother's argument, and pulled out a lollipop from the kit handing it over to the blue hedgehog. He felt his heart flutter again.

This was just getting scary.

Ear twitching hearing Tails snickering at him again, he gazed at the bright candy in scorn swatting it away. "What do I look like I'm five? I don't need that!" He complained, voice rising an octave.

Shocked at the outburst, Amy pulled back, feeling her heartbreak a little inside, but she didn't show it; instead, frowning at him. "You sure are acting like a five-year-old, and you could have just said no thanks instead of being rude." Sonic opened his mouth to make a sarcastic comment but was interrupted by a low reprimanding voice. "Just take the candy Sonic." Shadow unwrapped and shoved the treat into the speedster's mouth, effectively shutting him up.

Sonic silently sucked on his candy with a pout, not able to say anything else. He still wasn't used to hearing Shadow call him by his name on a regular basis. That and blueberry was his favorite.

Settling into a hunched position, Sonic wondered how it had all come to this? The way his friends were treating him lately seriously needed to stop, he was starting to feel like he did in his dreams, and he didn't like it. It was weird and so sudden too. Like they had collectively decided to treat Sonic like a little kid.

His head rose slightly at that thought, watching his friends as they took their spots in the living room to watch tv beside him. Were they doing this to get back at him for something? He could see Amy, Knuckles, and Tails coming up with such a scheme just to get on his nerves, but Shadow joining in and not acting like his moody, badass self? No, he had a reputation to uphold.

So why were they _all_ doing it?

Was this some sort of elaborate Eggman scheme?

Sonic snorted, swirling the candy in his mouth thoughtfully. _Eggface comes up with some pretty weird plans but just embarrassing me without having someway of it letting him attack the village? No, something else is going on...but what? I can't think of any pranks I've pulled recently that would warrant them all wanting a little revenge on me. Ugh, ok, I need to stop._ Sonic furrowed his brows in discomfort as his leg started throbbing again. _All this thinking is giving me a headache, and I'm not getting anywhere._

Sighing, Sonic leaned himself further back on the couch. Amy sitting next to her baby, noticed the sad look stitched on his face. Her ears and brows lowered in concern; she couldn't stay mad at her little emerald for long no matter how bratty he could act at times, especially if he was hurting. Leaning over, she whispered, "Hey, you ok?"

"Hmm?" he hummed, "You're awfully quiet. Is your leg hurting? Oh, I knew I forgot something! Hold on a sec, and I'll get you some pain medic-" Amy started to stand, motherly instincts kicking in, scolding her for allowing her baby to be in pain. Sonic grabbed her arm and pulled her back down. "Ames, stop. I'm fine; it's not that bad, and just cause I'm quiet, doesn't always mean something is wrong." he hushed her with a small smile, "Are you sure?"

"Positive, and...uh, thanks, by the way. For fixing me up." Amy allowed herself to relax, assured that what he said was genuine. She softly smiled in return, "No problem, my little emerald." she said, winking at him before setting her attention back to the tv.

Sonic blushed, shifting his gaze away, wishing he would muster the strength to tell her to stop calling him that. Every time she said that he felt a bit warm and fuzzy inside, it reminded him of how she mothered him in his dreams.

 _Dammit, why won't they go away?!_ He thought absently, scratching his chest, feeling it twinge inside.


	32. Chapter 32 Existential Crisis

It had been a little over a week since Team Sonic's picnic. While the blue blur's injured leg had healed up quite nicely, Sonic's mental state had dramatically declined. The dark circles and bags under his now dull green eyes and unkempt quills only added to this fact.

The poor hedgehog had been plagued with more reoccurring dreams of himself in diapers (as an adult and infant) while being looked after with love and care by his friends. Most notably, Shadow and Amy.

It was pure torture.

It wasn't the dreams themselves that we're nightmarish; it was the mushy heartfelt warm fuzzy feelings of unconditional love and attention they brought with them that would plague him long after waking up. Sonic couldn't shake away the yearning and crushing weight he felt in his chest every morning after a dream; sometimes, he would even wake up surprised to find the remains of tear stains on his muzzle.

The burning pain in his chest increased to excruciating levels whenever he was hanging out with his friends. At first, he thought maybe he was experiencing some heartburn from too many greasy meh burgers, but that theory went out the window after a few days of forage food only diet.

The irregular toddler treatment and newly acquired affectionate nicknames didn't help either as it only reminded him of the incessant dreams. He tried to refrain from behaving in any way that would encourage his friends to coddle him, being as serious and level headed as possible in every situation. To no avail, as they only teased him for attempting to imitate the Ultimate Lifeform, just like a little kid pretending to be like his dad.

He blew up at that retort.

Sonic's positive mood declined with each passing day becoming more uptight and hot-headed. Due to the fact, his current effort to make the chest pain go away was to stay up all night, avoiding the origin of his plight.

Ok, maybe it wasn't his best plan, but he had to try something!?

* * *

A gloved hand combed through unruly quills while the other brought a sugary, caffeinated, filled beverage to his lips, trying to stay awake while sitting at the table with his friends. Sonic picked up a barely salted fry and tossed it into his mouth, chewing slowly. "And then the guys says watermelon? I thought you said Guatemalan. Why would I marry a watermelon?"

"Hahahaa...I don't get it." Knuckles scratches his head, "Tails, you need to stop hanging around Sonic so much that was a horrible joke." Amy moans, Shadow grunts rolling his eyes, agreeing with her. "Oh, come on! It-it wasn't that bad, was it?"

"Bad enough that even Sonic didn't find it funny. And he comes up with the corniest jokes besides that ape in the suit you all watch on tv." Shadow mutters, "Hey, Comedy Chimp's jokes are not corny! Right, Sonic?...eh, Sonic?" Tails waves his hands in front of the dazed blue hedgehog.

"He's getting worse." Amy says, "Let me try." Shadow leans over and slaps Sonic across the face, "Momma's little boy say what!" Sonic screams, blinking rapidly; his eyes focus into sharp emerald daggers straight at Shadow, holding a hand over his burning cheek snapping at the black hog, "What the hell was that for faker?!"

"You weren't paying attention to the conversation again. Though that was probably for the better, you zoned out on the horrible joke Tails just told us-"

"Hey!"

"Regardless...what's going on with you, Sonic? Your attention span is even shorter than it usually is of late."

"Yeah, and you've been kinda mean too." Knuckles added, "I have no idea what you're talking about, faker!" Sonic hissed, "I disagree. I think your hiding something from us." Amy turned to the sleep-deprived hedgehog, tenderly placing her hand over his, "Is that true, Sonic? You can tell us we're your friends."

"I'm not hiding anything!" He jerked his hand back away from her touch; Amy flinched, looking hurt when he did that as if he was disgusted with her.

"Then explain the bags under your eyes. And why I've been seeing you run yourself ragged over the last few nights and drink nothing but coffee and eat sugary foods constantly." Shadow prodded, trying to pull out an answer from the speedster. "Since when did you start spying on me?! And who said you could dictate on how I live my life?!" Sonic rose from his seat, quills rising in a threatening stance. Shadow imitated his posture, both of them leaning over the table into the other's personal bubble. "Since you've started acting like a short fuse bomb ready to explode at any second!"

"So you admit stalking me! What are you gonna do next? Stab me in the back, take over the village and go back on Maria's promise just like the evil villain you are?!"

On some level, Sonic knew he was going too far. Still, sleep deprivation never leaves one with rational thinking ability, and Shadow's admitting he had been keeping tabs on the blue blur added to his building paranoia.

Shadow almost jumped over the table to tear out Sonic's throat for that accusation. Stealing himself back, he slowly took in a shaky breath. _He doesn't know what he's saying. He doesn't know what he's saying. He's not in his right mind, and you're making it worse. Calm down before it escalates any further._ Clenching trembling fists, Shadow breathed out. Letting the hedgehog's comment on Maria slide, for now, speaking in a neutral tone,

"No, I was not stalking you, Sonic. I've merely been keeping an eye on you because of your erratic behavior of late. You haven't been acting like yourself, and I'm not the only one who's noticed."

"Yeah, Sonic, you've been acting really weird."

"We're just worried about you, little blue." Knuckles put a large hand on the hedgehog's tense shoulders; Amy nodded sympathetically, agreeing with their sentiments.

Sonic's eyes shrunk to pinpricks. If looks could kill, the whole table would have been in flames. His quills sharpened and rose, pricking Knuckles hand making him jerk back, "LAY OFF! There's nothing wrong with me. It's you guys who have been acting like jackasses making fun of me and telling me what to do!" shoving a finger in front of Shadows face he snarled, "And you. Quite stalking me or you can officially consider yourself off the team got it faker." he spat.

Shadow was about to say something to try and de-escalate the situation again when all ears at the table rose, hearing an all too familiar laugh cut through the air.

"Well, well, well. It looks like there seems to be a little bit of a dispute going on between our two favorite pin cushions. What's the problem someone forgot to put the chili on your dog blue rat?" Eggman jeered, hovering above the group in his eggmobile. Sonic dropped his arm and slumped, harshly rolling his bloodshot eyes and moaning in aggravation, "This day could not possibly get any worse until you showed up." he muttered under his breath. "Can it, fathead!" Sonic snapped, whipping his head back to the human, "I'm too tired to deal with your shit today so just go back to that deserted island you call a lair and dig into another pint of Rocky Road."

"Wow, Sonic!" Eggman whistled, "Really packing it in with the insults today, aren't you? Words hurt, you know." Sonic mentally screamed some filthy phrases that would put a sailor to shame, "But no matter. It's no skin off my back if you're in a bad mood today. Megabot...Destroy that pissed off pest!" rolling on to the scene, Megabot's laser eye lit up charging and aiming for the center of the furry group.

"Aaaaaaaaahhh!" Sonic screamed a war cry, speeding off and attacking the massive robot. He curled into a spin dash and homing attacked the bot in a blind furry making large dents with each hit. When that wasn't enough, he sloppily punched and kicked it as if the machine had insulted him personally.

Villagers panicked and fled, getting as far away from the battle as possible while Shadow, Tails, Knuckles, Amy, and even Eggman did nothing but stand back, watching a blue blur attacking the machine. Mouths gaped open in slight shock not only with how mad Sonic was but also at how much damage he was causing in such a short amount of time despite his flimsy moves and unsteady gait. They didn't want to get in the way of his assault, accidentally ending up on the wrong end of Sonic's deadly kicks; even Eggman knew better.

Why else would he send robots to do the dirty work for him instead of doing it himself?

Making the final hit, Sonic landed in a crouch, hands resting on bended knees, trying to steady his pounding heart. His head was killing him now, accidentally head butting the robot a few times, leaving a ringing sensation in his ears and spinning vision.

Megabot crashed to the side. The collateral damage so extensive you couldn't even tell what the mass of metal had been just a few minutes ago.

"Woah, " Eggman breathed, "Someone got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning." growling, Sonic glared through his peripheral at the man.

"Seriously, you need to go to anger management or something. That was the worst temper tantrum I've ever seen."

Something in his brain snapped at those words, eye twitching, blue shoulders shaking. Sonic shoot up, stamping his foot on the ground like a toddler not having his way screeching. "I am not having a temper tantrum! You big fat, bald poo-poo headed meanie! LEAVE ME ALONE!"

SNAP! BOOM!

The sound of air cracking and an explosion blasted every eardrum in a 5-mile radius. A thick dust cloud whipped up, covering everything.

As the powder slowly settled, the ringing in everyone's ears lessened. Waving away the puff of dirt from his muzzle, coughing, Tails blinked, looking around, "What was that? Is everyone ok?"

"We're-cough-we're still here, Tails." Amy wheezed, "The doctor isn't." Shadow pointed out. Eggman having left the scene long before anything more disastrous could happen as per usual. "Wait a sec..." Amy turns around as the dust cleared enough for her to notice something blue was missing, "where's Sonic?" All eyes widen and quickly take in their surroundings, not finding their team leader anywhere. Shadow's head fell, having his chance to help someone he loved taken away from him once again; he cursed to himself, lowly, "Shit."

* * *

It didn't take long for the four friends to figure out that their blue friend was the one to cause the shock wave after his rapid disappearance.

All eyes drifted to rest on the ebony hog, Shadow blankly stared back between the fox, echidna, and pink hedgehog staring at him, "What?"

"You were the one watching him for the last few days. Explain." Amy demanded fists set firmly on her hips. Shadow sighed, "As I said earlier. I noticed just like the rest of you that Sonic was acting differently, and I decided to investigate." he let out another tired sigh, "Something has been bugging him. What? I don't know. All I know is he's been doing everything possible not to fall asleep, leading to this literal explosive outburst."

"Well, do you have any idea what might be the cause?"

"No. My first inclination was that he was suffering from nightmares, but I...don't know what the cause might be. Or it could be something else entirely that's bothering him. Like I said, I don't know the whole story."

"Well, whatever the case, may be we can't do anything about it without Sonic around." Tails places a hand under his chin in thought, his namesakes twitching, "We need to find him and get to the bottom of this. How long has he gone without sleeping?"

"4 days."

"Ok yeah, that explains a lot. We need to find him a.s.a.p. Sonic's in serious danger of hurting himself if we don't find him soon."

"Got it. Knuckles, you take the beach and the village, Tails, you give us an aerial sweep of the island, Shadow, you search the canyon and east jungle, I'll take the west side of the jungle and all of the archeological sites. Meet back here before sundown?" Serious faces and eyes filled with determination nodded in agreement with the pink hedgehog. Everyone ran off to begin the search in their designated areas, ready to hurry up and find their blue leader before the worst could happen.

* * *

Darkness that's all he saw, mind-numbing darkness.

Ok, so it wasn't mind-numbing. That was just his sleep-deprived mind talking nonsense. There wasn't anything besides that around him except for the sound of his sneakers squeaking against the wet floor and drops of water falling from who knows where. He couldn't tell; he didn't even know where he was or how he got here. All Sonic could remember was fighting Eggman, then yelling at him and spouting something embarrassing before dashing off feeling pissed off; he couldn't remember why though. Everything was just a blur that faded in and out in his mind. But not sleeping for 4 days straight will do that to you: that and give you a killer headache.

Having cooled down, Sonic continued shuffling blindly down the path of the cave. He was hoping to find an exit fairly soon cause Chaos was he tired. The lack of sensory input was not helping him keep awake either, the darkness easing his tired eyes, and the sound of water running was soothing to his ears.

_Wait a minute, running water? And...is that a light I see up ahead?_

Shifting to a light jog, he realized that the light was not white like it should be if it were coming from the sun. Instead, this light was softly changing colors. The sound of running water also grew in volume as he got closer.

Then there it was.

Sonic halted at the entrance, eyes widening in amazement at the sight before him, "Woah..." he breathed. The echo bouncing off vibrantly colored walls sparkling like a thousand stars. He places a hand on the wall brushing his gloves over the surface; it was smooth, worn away from condensation continually running down the walls over hundreds, perhaps thousands of years. Examining the surface further, he saw tiny slivers of pigmentation glowing spread all over the cave's walls, reflecting into many rainbows against the water dripping down stalactites and stalagmites scattered in the massive room.

"This is way past cool," Sonic spoke lowly, strolling further to a pond in the middle. His lethargic legs faltered, and losing balance; he landed on his knees before the calm water. "Ouch." he groaned, barely registering the pain but made no attempts to get up; he was too tired. "Hehe, I guess I'm clumsy and today.~" he sing songs and giggles with a crooked smile, delirium hitting him. Dull eyes drifted to the pond in front of him, leaning forward. He sees something moving underneath the surface.

There swimming underwater were several small fish with enormous eyes glimmering in several different shades of pink; Sonic giggled, "Hehehe, pink fishes." he watched the fish gracefully moving about the water in a stupor mind utterly empty of all thoughts. His arms slowly gave way next, sliding underneath him, laying on the cool floor. Sonic continued to watch the fish. Eyelids flickering until they finally drew closed, breathing deeply. Unaware of the moment when he finally gave in to sweet sleep after being awake for so long.

* * *

Everything in the village was back to normal, citizens going about their business, and the metal scrap that had been Megabot removed, like the scuffle earlier that day, had never happened.

Amy was the last one to meet back with the group at the restaurant. Any hope she had that one of the others had found Sonic fell from her face as she saw the rest of her friends looking just as sullen as she was. "Nothing?"

"Not even a blue quill." Tails replied sadly. "W-what do we do now? It's getting dark soon." Amy twisted the end of her outfit anxiously, totally at a loss on what to do now and where her little emerald had ended up.

Shadow held himself close, seeming to be in a debate; he had an idea. But he didn't like having to stoop to asking for help, especially from the person he was thinking of. But they were running out of time, "We need to go to the Doctor." he says reluctantly. "Are you serious?" Knuckles asks shocked Shadow would even suggest going to the so-called evil genius for help, "He's the one who made Sonic runoff in the first place! Why should we go to him for help?!" Amy scrunches her face, appalled at the mention of the human at a time like this.

"Unless fox boy has some kind of tracker for blueberry-" tilting his head in the fox's direction, Tails shook his head negatively, "We don't have a choice. We've searched this entire island and haven't found even a single clue as to where he could be. I know the Doctor has a way to track him down. He's our only chance to find Sonic before nightfall." he pointedly looked up. The beginning of the evening sun already shifting the colors of the sky into warm shades of orange and red emphasizing Shadow's point for him.

* * *

Eggman sitting on his couch in the lounge room, dug another spoon full of, (wouldn't you know it.) Rocky Road out of the pint while watching the latest episode of Hedgehog Abby. He was considering changing into something more comfortable at the next commercial break when something dark and brooding materialized right in front of the screen along with 3 other furry creatures. Gawking at the sudden appearance, the doctor didn't react until Shadow had swiped the remote from his fingers and turned off the tv, "Hey! I was watching that!"

"And now your not." Shadow tossed away the remote and crosses his arms, tapping his foot. "What do you pests want? I've already filled in my weekly quota to attack the village this week, and Maurice was just about to find out his girlfriend Amelia has been cheating on him with his cousin Nicky so unless it's an emergency, kindly hand back the remote and scram."

"This is an Emergency. Sonic is missing." Amy clasps her hands, walking up to the human with a pleading look, "So go look for him."

"We have. We've searched all over the island and can't find him anywhere! He's suffering from severe sleep deprivation and ran off; we know you have a way of tracking Sonic, so could you please help us?"

"And why should I? It's not my fault the blue pineapple has gone missing." he huffed, "Because if you don't, you'll have someone far worse to deal with than him." Shadow took a threatening step towards the doctor, making him gulp.

"My grandbaby is missing?!" a nasally high-pitched electronic voice suddenly asked in alarm; Eggman groaned, rubbing a hand over his face. "For the love of-for the last time, Mom-bot. Sonic is not your grandchild! But yes, it seems the annoying rat has disappeared."

 _Grandchild?_ All of the anthropomorphic animals in the room silently questioned with surprise garnishing their features, watching the bot fret about. "Oh, my goodness! We have to find him-oh! Metal would know where he is. I'll go-"

"Nonononono! We are not going to-" Eggman shrieked like a little girl when a chaos spear interrupted him, striking the wall just inches away from his nose; he could smell the hot burning crackle of energy char the edges of his 'magnificent' mustache. "W-waste any time. H-hurry up and get Metal, would you, Mom-bot?" his voice trembled as Shadow hmphed, smirking and crossing his arms. "Sadistic pincushion," Eggman mumbled low enough for Shadow not to hear, hating how the brooding hedgehog could easily have the human bend to his will.

Moments later, Mom-bot returned with Metal Sonic by her side before she left off again. "Wait a minute. How is Metal going to help us find Sonic?" Knuckles asks with raised brows, "Metal Sonic is installed with Sonic's DNA. And is also programmed to collect data about him to calculate the best way to attack and neutralize the hedgehog. Sonic's specific bio and chaos energy scans will help Metal locate where he is." Eggman explained proudly, walking over to the robotic copy patting his iron head. Knuckles didn't get a word of what the evil scientist said, but he sounded confident that the robot would find their blue friend, and that was enough for the echidna, "Metal. Locate Sonic."

 **"LOCATING PRIORITY ONE: SONIC T. HEDGEHOG."** Metal beeps, red eyes changing to a buffering image, "This will take just a minute or two. Would anyone care for a bit of cocoa?"

"No, thanks!" Tails quickly answers, remembering how 'tasty' Eggman's recipe was from last time. Yuck! Tails shuddered, the taste and texture faintly returning to his tongue.

 **"BING! HEDGEHOG LOCATED."** Metal beeped, red optics returning to normal, "Excellent!" Eggman beams before glowering, "Now scram!"

"Wait just a moment!" Mom-bot calls, wheeling in with a red duffel bag and hands it over to the robotic duplicate, "Here, Metal, take this with you just in case."

"What's in the bag?" Amy asks suspiciously, pointing to it, "Just some emergency supplies. First aid kit, water, snacks, a blanket, and other things to help make my grandbaby more comfortable."

"Aww, that's so sweet, Mom-bot!"

"Alright, alright, that's enough mushiness than I can stand. Take Metal with you, and get out-oh! And be sure to send him back after you find that rodent." Eggman says, while roughly pushing the group out the door,

"Thanks, Eggman!" Tails sends him a knowing grin. The human humphs and slams the door closed.

"Ok, we've got Metal Sonic, now what do we do?" The fox asks, turning back to the group, "I'll follow Metal to Sonic's location to make sure he doesn't try anything before bringing him back." Shadow thumbs to himself, glaring at the robot in the corner of his eye, "It'll be faster and safer that way. The rest of you can go back home and wait till we return." Amy places a hand on Shadow's shoulder, "Be careful and gentle with him." she gazed into those red eyes, recognizing the message they conveyed to her that he would do his utmost best to help and protect their little one and bring him home.

Nodding once, he looked to the blue robot waving a hand. "Lead the way." Beeping, Metal turned on his boosters, rising into the air, and took off with Shadow hot on his heels.


	33. Chapter 33 One Last Dream

**"Come out, come out wherever you are.~" a low voice teased. Sonic smiled widely, curled within himself like a ball. He was playing hide-and-seek with his Daddy. Right now, it was Shadow's turn to find him, and the little hedgie was hiding in Amy's closet behind a pile of shoes. It was the perfect hiding spot!**

**Daddy will never find me here! He snickered, suddenly he heard the sound of Amy's bedroom door opening followed by heavy footsteps made by some metal shoes. Sonic held his breath in apprehension, "Hmmm..." he heard Shadow hum pondering where the little hedgehog could be hiding. Silently he listened to the footsteps drawing nearer, then the sound of a closet door opening. Keeping perfectly still, he waited.**

* * *

**Checking under the bed, Shadow furrowed his brows, not finding what he was looking for. Twisting his head to the closet, he stood back up and walked to the door, creaking as it opened. Ruby eyes scanned the shoe covered floor; then he spotted an out of place prickly round ball, "Ahah! There you are!" he roared, quickly reaching for his target before it could escape. But he was just a second too late, his fingers swiping past the blue ball that rolled away in a burst of speed.**

**Shrieking with delight, Sonic unrolled himself, switching to a fast crawl as he hurried to getaway. "Get back here, you little trouble maker!" Shadow yelled, chasing after him. Sonic quickly made his way to the living room, hesitating for a second, swiftly turning his head, looking for another place to hide.**

_**The couch!** _

**Unfortunately, Sonic's moment of hesitation cost him dearly as Shadow caught up and leaped, catching him by surprise, "Gottcha!" Shadow cheered in triumph, grabbing Sonic by the leg turning him over, so they were face to face. Sonic recoiled, looking up at crimson eyes, smiling evilly down at him. Pulling the squirming hedgie into his clutches, Shadow began blowing raspberries onto the little hedgie's tan tummy. Sonic squealed, laughing hysterically, entirely at the mercy of his ex-rival, "You thought you could get away, didn't you? Well, you can never escape from the Ultimate Life-form!" the ebony hog growled playfully, lifting Sonic into the air swinging him around.**

**"Ah!" he squeaked with a wide toothless smile in glee, raising his arms beside him in an airplane position while Shadow stood up and whirled him around the living room, making airplane noises. Amy walked in, grinning at the sight, "Ok, you two, lunch is ready."**

**On cue, a growl emanated from Sonic's stomach, and Shadow laughed, "I think someone's hungry." he teased, lowering the hoglet back into his arms. Sonic nodded vigorously.**

**Shadow placed him into his high chair and took a seat at the table, "Here you go." Amy sets two plates of grilled chicken with a salad and roasted potatoes for them and a small plate of bite-sized chicken nuggets with ketchup and peas and carrots on the side for Sonic. "Thank you, Rose." Shadow says before digging in; Sonic signed his 'thanks,' doing the same. Amy nodded, setting herself down, taking a bite of her cooking.**

**A few minutes later, Sonic finished his nuggets. He waves to Amy, letting her know he was done; she eyed the peas and carrots still on his plate untouched, "Come on, Sonic, eat your veggies. I know you're not full yet, when you've finished those then you can get out." he pouted at her, "Not want that. Want dessert." Shadow translated. "You can have something sweet later, eat your peas and carrots." Amy insisted, not backing down when Sonic pulled the puppy dog eyes on her; Shadow chuckled at the disappointed frown that followed after it, "Looks like you lost again blueberry, go on eat your greens for Mommy and Daddy."**

**Whining, Sonic did as told, picking up a handful of now cold peas and carrots stuffing them into his small mouth. He puckered at the mushy texture, gumming and swallowing it down as fast as he could. A few bites later, he signed that he was finished, "Alright, I guess that's enough for now." Amy acquiesced. Standing up, she released him up from the chair while Shadow disposed of the scraps and began cleaning up.**

**As she picked him up, Amy recognized the feeling of a heavy diaper, "Mmm, I think someone could use a change. We'll get your bottle after." walking to the nursery, Sonic rested his head on her shoulder as he was whisked away to the changing table.**

**One diaper change later, the two were back in the kitchen. Opening the fridge, Amy pulled out a bottle of chocolate milk, taking it and Sonic to the living room.**

**Getting cozy on the couch, she adjusted Sonic into a more comfortable position and offered the sweet drink. Nestled in her arms, he accepted, happily, sucking down the milk. Amy smiled at him affectionately, humming lightly as he made quick work of the bottle.**

**When it was empty, Amy set the bottle aside, resting the hoglet on top of her shoulder; she gave him a few firm pats encouraging a small burp out. He sighed, relieved of the pressure. Continuing to hum, Amy rocked, gently rubbing his back. Sonic sighed again, smiling in content and stretched, yawning widely and nuzzling her soft cheek. Cherishing the warmth of his Mommy's embrace, emerald eyes fluttered closed as he listened to her lullaby.**

**Once he was snoring peacefully, Amy carefully placed the sleeping hedgehoglet onto a nearby pillow, putting the paci into his mouth, and laying a blanket over to keep him warm. Tenderly caressing his tiny cheek as the pacifier bobbed up and down, "Goodnight, my little emerald." she whispered.**

* * *

**He walked through the forest, unsure of where he was going or where he was. Raising his eyes, Sonic could see the sun was starting to set in between the trees. He needed to get back home quickly...wait a minute, where is home?**

**"Uh oh." he softly squeaked, turning around gazing over his surroundings, finding nothing that looked familiar. He was lost; it was getting dark and scary outside. "H-hello! Anyone out there?" Sonic raised his ears to listen, shuffling where he stood with his tail between his legs, hearing only the wind pick up rusting the leaves above. "Please, I-I-I'm lost! Please help me!" He called again, desperate to hear a voice.**

**A loud noise clapped from above his tiny head, startling the little hedgehog. Whimpering, he frantically searched for cover from the sudden thunderstorm approaching. Another boom shook the dark sky, followed by heavy rainfall; not watching where he was going as he ran, Sonic slipped on the slick ground, landing face-first in a pile of mud. He sniffed, trying to keep the tears in, picking himself up. Wiping some mud from his face, he saw a small hole made by some roots underneath a tree just a few feet ahead. He scurried to the sanctuary that seemed to be just right for his size.**

**Entering the small hole, he didn't bother removing any more mud off; that was the least of the hoglet's problems right now. Pulling his knees close to his chest, trying to keep warm, he watched the rain pour down from his hideout with huge eyes. His ears folded flat against his head as the sky roared and clapped, lightning tearing through the dark as night clouds.**

**Lost, cold, wet, and scared, Sonic shivered, pressing his back to the hard bark wishing someone would find and save him. Not that there was anyone out there looking for him; as far as the world was concerned, he didn't exist. He had no one, and he was alone like he had always been.**

**Alone, unknown, unwanted.**

**Shaking like a leaf from the cold and a broken heart, Sonic curled into himself as much as possible, his small voice crying softly for something he probably would never have.**

* * *

**Sonic woke up with a start in a cold sweat, sitting up and clenching the blanket to his chest, heart beating as fast as he could run. Looking around, he found himself in the same position he was in just before waking up.**

**Alone.**

**"M-ma-Mama...Dada?" He slowly calls out. No answer. Chills ran through his arms, and though his heart wasn't beating quite as fast as when he first woke up, it still rattled in his chest like a maraca. Clearing his throat, Sonic called again a little louder, "Mama? Dada?"**

**Still no answer.**

_**Come on; there's nothing to be scared of...m-maybe they're in another room?** _

**That logical thought eased his anxiety slightly; taking a few deep breaths to calm his heart, he carefully descended off the couch. Sonic crawled past the kitchen, sparing it a brief glance, not seeing anyone there; that wasn't unusual, though. It was more likely one or both of them were in their rooms. He went to Amy's room first.**

**Scrunching his face pushing the door open with all his might, he opened his eyes, finding the bed perfectly made and nothing out of place. No Amy. Feeling his stomach turn sour and panic grow, quickly he went to the office turned guest room where Shadow had been sleeping.**

**No signs of life there either.**

**His breathing quickened on the verge of a panic attack, but there was one more room to check. In less than a second, Sonic was in his room. Everything was picked up and in its place. Fully freaking out now, Sonic dashed around the whole house, searching the rooms again and every nook and cranny he could think of, calling for his Mommy and Daddy with increasing urgency. "Mama! Dada! Mama! Dada!"**

_**Where are you?! Where is everyone?! Please don't leave me! I don't want to be alone again!** _

**Stopping back where he started in the living room, hearing nothing but the sounds of his heart thundering and rapid gasps, tears blurred his vision. He couldn't find them anywhere. The whole house looked like it had been swept clean of any trace of where they could have possibly gone; it was like Shadow and Amy had disappeared into thin air!**

**Did they not like him anymore? Was he too much? Why didn't they say anything? Why did they leave him alone?**

**Alone...he was alone...again.**

**He felt nauseous, a sharp pain striking his heart; his lip quivered, choking out a cry; then another, whimpering as fat tears rolled down his muzzle. Curling up, he cried out as only an infant could when scared and in need of comfort.**

* * *

**"Thanks for the help Shadow, I really appreciate it." said hedgehog nodded with a soft smile picking up the large basket of harvested fruits and vegetables from the garden. Amy pattered on, dusting the dirt from her gloves, "I can't believe I almost lost everything to those nasty vermin. They took out all of my tomatoes in one night! It's a miracle we were able to save as much as we did, and at least they didn't touch my bell peppers. I would have-"**

**Amy cut herself off and froze. Shadow stood as still as a statue. Two sets of ears perked high, picking up a cry of distress; the hedgehogs looked at each other in alarm, "Sonic!" they cried. Forgetting the basket of food, the duo raced back to the house, hearts stopping in fear hearing the sound of their baby crying. What was happening to their baby? They had only been gone a few minutes. Worry increasing with each passing second. Their thoughts raced, was he hurt? Did Eggman attack? Who dared to try to take their baby?**

**Being the fastest, Shadow was the first to burst through the door, nearly breaking it out of its hinges. Ruby eyes darted all over the room, searching for any threats or signs of a struggle. His focus stopped abruptly, finding his precious little one not where they had left him last. Shadow felt like murderously ripping to shreds whoever had rendered their hedgehoglet to tears; it broke his heart hearing such cries of agony.**

**Approaching slowly, Shadow bent down, gently shushing the broken-up hoglet. "Hey, hey, hey. It's ok Daddy's here." picking Sonic up by his armpits, he hugged and slowly swayed the hoglet in his secure hold.**

**"I'm here. I'm here! What's going on?!" Amy yelled, gripping the door frame just in time to stop herself from running into Shadow. "I don't know. Check the house and make sure no surprises are waiting for us," he instructed, nodding towards the back of the house. Amy reached out but pulled back, hesitating, wanting to comfort her baby first but agreed that a quick house search was necessary for everyone's safety. Silently she left Shadow to continue to try calming the distressed hedgehoglet.**

**A short time later, she returned, having found no signs of an attack or intruders. Amy saw Shadow still having a difficult time getting Sonic to calm down. No amount of bouncing or rocking was having any effect on the wailing hoglet. "Here, let me try." Amy offered, holding her arms out to take the blue ball; Shadow gave him to her, praying that she would have more success.**

**"Oh, baby, my poor sweet baby~. What's wrong? Huh? It's ok; Mommy's got you." Amy spoke sweetly, holding Sonic close so he could hear her heart. Kissing his head quills and rubbing his back, repeating her reassurances that they were there and he was ok. It took a full 5 minutes of her routine before the sobbing turned to sniffling and an occasional hiccup. "There we go, there we go." she cooed, pulling back to see red, watery eyes peeping up out of their hiding place, shining up at her. Amy used her thumb to wipe away his tears.**

**"Now, can you tell us what's the matter, sweet pea?" Sniffing, Sonic shrugged with uncertainty, drawing his attention away from her. Shadow sensing what he was looking for, stepped into his vision, "I'm here too, blueberry."**

**Sonic visibly relaxed a bit, seeing that both were with him again. A small hand reached towards Shadow slightly, making a grabbing motion, and he gave the blue ball his finger in return. Shadow watched that tiny hand grab hold and squeezed the digit tight even though the hand barely wrapped around the width of his index finger. Sonic was so small as a baby and even more so right now curled up in Amy's arms with a look on his face that said,** **'please don't hurt me.' It was pathetic in the most heartbreaking way. Shadow quickly blinked the excess water in his eyes away and reminded himself to breathe, relaxing his quills, trying to give Sonic a comforting smile. He couldn't help his blueberry if he were a mess himself.**

**Using his other hand, Shadow rubbed a tiny triangular ear, not able to stick up on its own completely, "Come on, it's ok, Sonic. You can tell us anything. We're not going anywhere." he softly encouraged with a warm expression. Your safe here; no one is going to hurt you in a million years. Not if I can help it!**

**Green eyes lingered between him and Amy before settling back to the black hog. Sonic took a deep breath pulling his hands back and began signing, explaining what had happened a few minutes prior, with Shadow carefully interpreting in a hushed voice matching Sonic's tone perfectly.**

**"And I got scared-I was...alone again...like before. I thought I did something wrong and made you both so mad you left. Hic-I'm sorry. I'm sorry I'm so much trouble." Sonic hiccuped, tears falling again. Amy held him even tighter, shushing him. Deeply troubled with how the blue hedgie viewed himself as nothing more than a burden despite all the good he had done for others. He still felt the need to prove to others and himself that he was worthy of love. Why no one had come to his aide years ago, she would never know, but now with this second chance, she would make sure he knew that he was loved and make sure he was never alone again.**

**Swallowing a lump that had formed in her throat, she spoke with a firm voice wanting to make her point clear. "Sonic. Listen to me, sweetheart. You. Are not. A burden. Don't ever think that you are or listen to anyone who says that. You are our precious little baby, and we would never ever abandon you no matter how much you drive us crazy."**

**Sonic stared at her with large eyes, a part of him wanted to argue that she was wrong, but he couldn't get his hands to form anything to say; what could he say when she had spoken those words with such strong conviction. It almost felt like a dream. Here in her warm and secure arms as they both looked at him. Sonic could practically see the love pouring out of their hearts; he wasn't used to such strong displays of affection. He tilted his head in awe-struck.**

**She harshly laughed at his expression, raising his head with a finger gazing into those shiny gem-like orbs, "Yes, it's true! We love you so much, Sonic. Every last bit."**

**_You mean it? Honest to goodness mean it?!_ He wondered in disbelief, tears of happiness filling his eyes again. Shadow nodded as if he could read his thoughts, "Always no matter what! Even when you're grown and causing trouble, you'll always be our precious little blueberry. Don't you forget it! Cause if you do-" Shadow wryly smiled, tickling his tummy, making Sonic break into a grin laughing and lightening the whole room, "I'll send the tickle monster on you until you do remember!" Sonic laughed harder, waving his hands, trying to protect the vulnerable spot in vain. Amy rescued the giggling fur ball by pulling him up and covering him with kisses from head to toe.**

**His sorrow long gone and put far away from his mind. Sonic smiled brightly, grateful for having such wonderful friends. He felt lighter than air, like a weight he had been carrying for years had finally been lifted. Sniffing away the last of his tears, he reached out again to Shadow. Amy did the same, pulling the usually grumpy hog into a group hug. Sonic nuzzled in their warm embrace, heart swelling with love, happy to have finally found what he had been searching for.**

**This moment was one he would never forget.**


	34. Chapter 34 Wake and Rescue

Fierce red eyes focus on the blue robot flying a few paces ahead of him. Shadow was determined not to let the robot out of his sight, worried that once they found their target, Metal would take advantage of Sonic's vulnerable state and hurt him before he had the chance to defend himself. It had crossed Shadow's mind earlier that this whole ordeal could be one large scheme from Eggman.

Somehow render Sonic to a weakened state. Separate him from the team. Then BAM! Capture and destroy.

_Well, it's not going to work. He's not going to even get the chance, not so long as I'm around._

Even though the two were traveling at break-neck speeds, turning their surroundings into green and brown streaks. In his peripheral, Shadow was still able to recognize the smudge pattern they were passing. An eye ridge rose ever so slightly in question; milliseconds later, they entered and into the depths of Shadow's cave.

Metal Sonic's headlights turned on when they entered into the darkness, lighting up the way, revealing the massive complex's actual appearance. Divevets and craters scattered within, gaping holes in the floor leading to who knows how many feet further down, and dozens of long pathways already explored by the ebony hog. But he wasn't interested in that right now; Shadow's priorities laid with finding a certain blue hedgehog and returning him home safely just as promised.

As they turned and twisted through the maze, Shadow realized they were heading straight for a specific room he had shown Sonic over a month ago.

And that's exactly where they stop.

Slowing down, Metal Sonic descends to the floor at the chamber entrance; Shadow comes to a halt right next to the robot. He stares through the entryway, honestly surprised that Sonic was just on the other side. It never occurred to him that the blue blur would return to this place on his own as he didn't seem that interested in the room initially.

Neither saying a word, Shadow enters first with Metal tailing him. Ruby eyes instantly spot a blue mound of fur on the floor by the large crystal pond.

"Sonic," he whispers, hurrying to the sleeping speedster's side. Bending down, he rolls Sonic onto his back, "Sonic?" he calls again. Sonic continues to sleep, his face twisted, displeased at being moved, he mumbles something Shadow can't make out. The black hog lets out a breath he had been holding, relieved that Sonic was uninjured. A plopping sound jolts Shadow's attention to Metal Sonic sitting next to him. The robot opens the red bag; he'd forgotten about that thing, digging through it. "What are you doing?" he whispers.

 **"Scans indicate the target is in an insufficient state. Mom-bot has provided tools to help target to return to properly functioning levels."** Metal replies in a flat tone, pulling out a warm blanket, green pacifier, and a diaper. Shadow's ears flatten at the echo from the obscenely loud robot, tempted to shush Sonic's duplicate via a fist to the face, but his hands remain still, instead crimson eyes widen at the items pulled from the bag. The blanket made sense as it can get to sometimes get to below freezing temperatures in the caverns. But the pacifier and diaper he couldn't wrap his head around, those unusual first aid kit items.

He watches the robot with interest as it places the diaper on Sonic, wrapping him snugly in the blanket with such a delicate and precise hand Shadow didn't know the robot was capable of. Metal adds the final touch, gingerly placing the pacifier in its place and making the blue hedgehog look like a newborn baby, snuggly wrapped up and sleeping away. Shadow sits silently in awe that Sonic remained in a deep sleep throughout the process.

Shaking his head and scolding himself for getting distracted and lowering his guard minutely, Shadow moves closer to Sonic intervening before Metal can do anything more, gently taking and picking up the wrapped up burrito-hog. Standing back up and preparing himself for any oncoming attack from the robot if it made any attempts to take his charge.

Metal pays no mind closing the bag, hanging it over his shoulder, **"Mission complete. Target found, repaired, and safely returned."** Surprised at the robot's lack of hostility, Shadow blinks a few times before returning to his usual frown nodding in appreciation, "You may return to your master now. Thank you." Metal nods back before turning on its boosters and flies away.

Feeling the weight shift in his arms, Shadow glances down to see Sonic nuzzling the white patch of fur on his chest with a pained expression, sniffing and whining; ears pulled back with tears slipping out of closed eyes. Worry appears on Shadow's face wondering what had caused the sudden disturbance in the back of his mind. He affectionately rubs the top of Sonic's head, holding him close, whispering in a soothing tone, "Sshhh. Don't worry, blueberry; we'll be home soon. You're going to be ok; daddy won't let anything happen to you, I promise." taking the utmost care to do so without disturbing the sleeping hedgie. Shadow walks out of the cavern to return his blue bundle home.

* * *

A black nose twitches, then an ear. He's awake but doesn't open his eyes, still feeling like he could sleep for a little while longer. His arms and legs don't have much wiggle room, but that's fine; he doesn't want to move that much anyway. It's so nice and warm right here wrapped...no swaddled in this soft blanket; he feels safe and secure in his crib with Mommy and Daddy nearby.

He sucks on the pacifier, snuggling further into his warm cocoon, on the verge of falling to sleep again when he feels a pressure building in his bladder. With a small smile, he releases, enjoying the new wave of warmth spreading; he doesn't alert Mommy or Daddy right now, knowing they will find out later and change him. Sighing through his nose, he tries to go back to sleep.

Several minutes later, he's still awake, frowning, and with a huff, he blames his bladder for having the audacity to wake him when he was so close to sleep before.

_Rude._

_Might as well go ahead and get up._ He silently mourns, opening his eyes to see the race car mobile hanging above. Wiggling out of the blanket Sonic notices something is...off? His arms and legs...his whole body is bigger and longer than it was earlier, like he grew overnight literally!

_Wait a minute..._

Hands in view, he sees white gloves covering his fingers, eyes drifting down. He sees he's still wearing not only his now soaked diaper, but he's also wearing his bandana, red shoes, and sports tape like when he's an adult.

His heart stops.

 _I'm an adult!_ Head jolting up wide emerald eyes quickly survey the room, finding it to be the same nursery as in his dreams. His stomach feels heavy and cheeks warm as a shiver rolls down his back. _Wait, this-this has happened before, so...I must still be dreaming then, right?_ A tentative hand pinches his thigh. _Yeowch!_ Leaping out of the crib, Sonic lands on his feet, clutching his chest, feeling like his heart was about to burst out. _Oh no...oh, Nononononono, Chaos no, don't tell me this isn't...but I felt...and I just-._ Quickly spinning around the room, his pupils shrink in horror, realizing this wasn't a dream.

"Oh Chaos, I thought I was an actual-and wet myself while sucking on a-" a high-pitched whine escaped from firmly pressed lips. Biting his tongue Sonic curled into himself, holding his head in his hands, his tail between his legs wishing that he hadn't done what he just did and that this was one of those dreams that you woke up in but not really cause you were still dreaming.

_Please, dear Chaos, somebody wake me up!_

Nervously laughing at the situation for a split second with a shaky smile, Sonic mutters to himself in disbelief, holding himself, "This can't be happening, this can't be happening. This has got to be some weird dream, but if it was a dream, you should wake up, but I can't wake up because it's real, and I can't believe I thought I was a baby and wet myself. And why am I wearing a diaper in the first place? And why does this all seem so familiar?" at that last question, he opened his eyes. "Wait, how...h-how am I in the nursery?" forgetting his embarrassing predicament for a moment. This time, he slowly turns to scan the room again, finding everything to be exactly like it was in the dreams.

Everything was the same, from the changing table with his name on it to the carpet's color. "And where am I anyway," he asks, confused. He only saw the nursery when he was dreaming, but he was awake now, the pinch proved it, so...how was he standing here?

A noise just outside the door breaks his train of thought. Head darting to the door; he sees the handle jiggling. The door creaks open, light from the hallway, creating almost a hallo effect around the silhouette.

Amy stands there as her eyes widen, seeing Sonic standing in front of her, shocked to see him up. "You're awake!" She says with delight. Sonic says nothing standing stock still in a mixture of emotions, embarrassment, surprise, fear but mostly confusion. He can't help but blush, remembering that he was still wearing a dirty diaper on full display in front of his friend. He wanted to turn tail and hide from the embarrassing situation and erase it from his memory. Yet he couldn't find the will to move, still at a loss as to what was happening, and Amy didn't seem to acknowledge the awkward atmosphere. Sonic felt unsure if he should be grateful she hadn't said anything...maybe she didn't notice?

As he stands there thinking, Amy looks him over in the hallway's light wondering why he was just standing there looking like a lost puppy? Raising a fist to clear her throat, breaking the silence, she softly asks, "H-how, are you feeling now?"

"...um...ok, I guess?"

"You're not...hurting anywhere?"

"N-no, no, I'm...fine."

"Um...Ames."

"Yeah?"

"Can you tell me what's going on?" He tugs on his gloves, flicking his eyes over the nursery, waiting for an explanation as she stares at him. Searching for something, what? He didn't have a clue, but she couldn't seem to find it. After what feels like an eternity, Sonic starts to open his mouth to ask again before she finally replies, "Yeah. Come on, we'll explain everything." she says, holding out her hand. "We?"

"Yeah. We've been waiting for you to wake up. We were beginning to think you decided to start hibernating or something if you didn't get up later." she jokes lightly, trying to ease his tension, "Uh, heh. Ok." he flashes a smile briefly, confusion and apprehension returning to his face before cautiously taking her hand and following her to where the others are waiting.

_At least she hasn't said anything about the diaper yet._


	35. Chapter 35 Welcome Back Baby

Amy pulls him along as they walk to the living room, yelping when her arm is suddenly jerked back. Stopping, she looks back to see Sonic fidgeting in place with a worried look in his eyes, anxiously whispering, "Um, Amy...don't you think I should-um...doesn't something seem off to you?"

Tilting her head, she looked him over. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, his diaper obviously needed to be changed, but other than that, everything seemed fine to her. It was Sonic's demeanor that was off like he wasn't comfortable in his own fur. He'd been acting strangely for a while, especially around Amy and Shadow, having a fleeing look in his eyes and acting antsier than usual. She'd gotten the impression at times that he wanted to be with them as little as possible.

Her thoughts drifted back to what Shadow had mentioned yesterday. _Why is Sonic so closed off now? He had opened up so much about his past to us, and after that, we grew so close, spending so much time together since the incident. (Well, not incident more like a happy accident almost two months ago.) What's changed?_ Sonic closed them all off again as soon as he got back to normal...why? He was safe with them. Why did he seem not to want to be in their company anymore?

"No. Why? Do you need a change?" she asked, puzzled. Sonic's face flushed, and he started to sweat, "N-no! Of course not! I didn't use the stupid diaper! And what am I doing with one on anyway?! The guys will never let me live this down if they saw me like this!" he stuttered, gesturing to the padding with gritted fangs.

 _'The guys would never live him wearing a diaper down?'_ She was taken aback by that statement. _The guys have never made fun of him wearing one before. Why would they do so now?_ A light bulb started to flicker in her head, an idea of why the blue blur was acting so strangely. She would need to talk to Tails first, hiding her confusion behind a gentle smile. Amy retook his hand, guiding him again to the rest of the group, "Don't worry about it; they don't mind if you're in a diaper. They know already. But we do need to talk, so just relax, and I'll fix you up later." leaving him with no opportunity to argue, she pulled him forward, calling out to everyone. "Hey guys, look who's up!"

All heads turned to them with smiles of relief, "Welcome back, blueberry!"

"Sleep good little blue?"

"Feeling better, Sonic?"

The blue hedgehog gaped at his friends, red-faced too embarrassed to say anything; his lips pressed tightly behind silent whimpering. "He's okay," Amy answers, gently pushing him down to sit on the couch; Shadow and Tails scoot over, giving him room, "just a little confused."

"Oh?" Knuckles raises an eye ridge, "Don't worry 'bout that. Happens to me all the time. It'll pass." he assures; Sonic rolls his eyes, his snarky composure returning briefly to reply with a dull sarcastic tone, "Gee, thanks, Knux, real helpful."

"You're welcome!"

"So you're feeling ok now? I wouldn't be surprised if you were still tired after going 4 days without sleep." Tails asks, crossing his arms with a look of disapproval. Sonic sighs, rubbing the back of his head, bashfully reminded of his actions over the last few days, "Oh, yeah, I'm still tired. But I feel much better than yesterday. Though those darned dreams still won't go away." he lowly coughs the last part behind a gloved fist.

Suddenly Amy reappears, having left for a moment to grab something, "Here, drink this." she offers, "Oh, thanks." he smiles at her, feeling quite parched. When he sees the drinking vessel, a baby bottle of apple juice, he glares at the bottle like it was mocking him, "Ok. Enough, I've had it! Seriously, what's the deal!?" he yells, shoving the thing back into Amy's hands.

"What are you talking about?" Shadow asks with raised brows. "This! All of this!" Sonic flails his hands to the bottle, and all of them getting increasingly frustrated, "You guys have been treating me like a little kid for weeks now, and I'm sick of it! What is this all some sort of elaborate prank? Look, whatever I did, I'm sorry I won't do it again but knock it off!"

All in the group look at each other, confused at first as to what their blue leader was talking about. They sweatdrop, having the decency to look slightly ashamed even if they didn't know why. "Sonic, this isn't a prank." Shadow says meekly, leaning closer to the blue hedgehog, "I can assure you we were not doing it to antagonize you. I don't think we even realized we were treating you that way. We only did so out of habit."

"Habit?! Since when did this become a habit?!" Sonic continued to yell, "You guys never treated me like this until a few weeks ago."

Amy tapped Tails' shoulder discreetly, flicking an ear her way, he whispered, "What is it, Amy?"

"I think I know what the problem is." Tails tilted his head to her. His attention drifting away from the upset chattering hedgehogs beside him. He indicated for her to continue, "Sonic's lost his memory."

"You think he has amnesia? What makes you say that?"

"He looked very confused and lost when I went to check up on him in the nursery. And he obviously used his diaper. You'd think since I've changed him in the past, it'd be no big deal now, right? But when I asked him about it, he flat out denied ever using it. He was more concerned about what you guys would think seeing him in it. And you saw the way he reacted when I gave him the bottle-uh purely out habit, mind you!" she whispered.

Tails pondered what the pink hog told him and, thinking back to what Shadow had mentioned about his brother's behavior and what he had seen himself. It seemed to line up with what she said. Though it was possible, there could be another explanation for the odd behavior.

"Sonic..."Tails spoke, tapping his brother's shoulder, interrupting the two male hedgehog's conversation. Both turned to the young fox, who started to whisper in Sonic's ear, "Have you been...repressing your ABDL tendencies?" The blue blur shook his head, taken aback, staring at his brother like he had lost his mind, "My ALD, who what now?"

"Do you remember what happened last month when we went to those tunnels Amy had us explore?" Tails pressed out loud, "The underground tunnels? We never went there. I thought we canceled that trip?"

Blue eyes lit up in understanding. Amy was right; it all made sense now. The distancing, the forgetfulness, and other odd behaviors (besides the refusal to sleep, he still didn't know what that was all about) were all connected. Sonic had selective amnesia.

"What? Yeah, we did! Don't you remember Sonic? That's when you turned into a little teeny tiny baby." Knuckles replies narrowing his eyes and the distance between his hands, illustrating how small the hedgehog used to be. Sonic just stares at the echidna in bewilderment. Shadow was doing the same but at Sonic before both gaze back at the fox. Folding his hands together, Tails shyly smiles, "He's right."

"What! But...but-" feeling out of the loop, Sonic quickly glances at Shadow and Amy both nodding their heads confirming it was true, "But I don't remember anything!"

"That, " Tails timidly points to himself, looking away, "Is my fault." Shadow glares at the fox kit dangerously growling, "What did you do?"

"It wasn't on purpose, I swear!" Tails put his hands up in a placating gesture, desperately hoping Shadow wouldn't kill him, "I just may have...forgotten to make an adjustment to the formula used to turn him back to normal." he squeaked quickly. Sonic's eyes flicker back and forth from Tails and Shadow. This wasn't making any sense. Pulling his ears down in frustration, he yells, "Will somebody, please explain what the heck happened to me?!" His younger brother lays a hand on his knee, "I'll explain. Ya see..."

Tails starts the tale from the beginning with how Sonic had discovered a youth regeneration machine in the tunnels, getting accidentally stuck inside and turned into an infant. Shadow and Amy cut in at certain points in the story before taking over completely about Sonic's time in their care. Knuckles even adds in specific details or forgotten points during the story.

As they continue, Sonic's face morphs from confusion and anger to sadness, and recognition, calmly nodding, taking everything in, not interrupting even once. He recalls the events as they are told, remembering everything he felt and thought about from that first day to the last moment before returning to normal. He also realizes that the dreams he had been having weren't dreams at all...they were memories.

Waves of remorse, regret, and grief wash over the hedgehog, his head falling slowly into his hands with a flush, trying to hold back the tears, feeling ashamed of the way he had foolishly behaved toward his friends, blaming them for the way he had been feeling. When in reality, he was the one to blame. At the end of the story, Sonic's eyes are closed, hiding his tears behind closed fists, and his shoulders shake as he silently breaks down.

Before anyone can stop him, Knuckles with a speed that would have impressed Sonic; we're he not in emotional distress, knowing the signs of a crying hedgie. Throws himself up, grabbing the sobbing hedgehog off the couch and into his arms. Taking his place on the sofa, keeping a spiky blue head over his broad shoulder, Knuckles held Sonic in a protective and comforting hug. Sonic instantly latched on, Knuckles tightening his hold in return. He didn't look like he was going to let the hedgie go anytime soon.

That broke the dam. Sonic wept harder, wrapping his arms around the big brute, having not felt this small and vulnerable since before turning back to normal. It was so nice, warm, familiar, safe. He felt a wave of nausea hit him, feeling sick at how bratty he had acted days ago, knowing he should have just confronted his friends about the situation instead of trying to tough it out and fix it himself like he usually did. Things never worked out well when that happened; only then he opened up about his problems did things turn out. That was the real issue, not opening up; it only brought him pain and heartache like right now.

Seeing him burst into tears, Amy and Shadow quickly turn into parental mode taking their positions, surrounding the echidna holding the sobbing hedgie in their embrace, "I'm sorry, I'm so-so-sorry. I should have told you, I should have-I'm sorry," he cries quietly repeating. "What on Mobius for? It's not your fault you lost your memory." Amy says, rubbing circles on his back, "B-but-but I did! And I mistreated you all when I started remembering." Shadow blinked, not sure if he had heard Sonic correctly, "You-you remembered?"

"Y-yeah, in my dreams. That's why I was trying so hard not to fall asleep at night." he shudders, taking a few deep breaths to calm down enough to talk; he sniffed and continued, "I remembered how you guys took care of me. The way you treated me was so...nice. I felt so loved and not just needed but wanted." Sonic choked out a bitter laugh, "But then whenever I woke up, and you guys weren't there. I felt...so alone and ashamed of myself for having those kinds of, what I had thought of the time, dreams, and wishing that they weren't. That you guys were-we-" at that, he broke down again. Covering his face in shame.

"I'm so sorry, guys," he croaked some minutes later, his voice raw from crying so much. "I-I should...I should have told you what was happening. I should have told you the truth."

"It's alright, little blue, " Knuckles says, rubbing circles in between blue spines, "we forgive you."

"N-n-no." Sonic hiccups, "It's not ok. I need to come clean." steeling his courage and taking a deep breath, Sonic turns himself around in Knuckles' arms to face his friends, explaining a side of himself that had appeared during his one-month baby experience. He tells them about how Tails discovered he was having a second childhood through one test during the first few days and learned that he was an Adult Baby. And how he had secretly explored his Little side during his time as an infant.

"But I was too afraid to tell you guys, letting my pride get in the way again. I was too embarrassed that when I'd turn back to normal, you'd think I was nothing more than just...a pathetic little baby...instead of a hero. When that's what I am really-sniff-just a big baby. I'm so sorry you guys for lying and not telling you sooner, and even though I still at times want to be treated like a baby or toddler, you guys don't have to. You've done enough of that for me already, and I can't thank you guys enough for being there for me when I needed help."

"It's ok, Sonic, we forgive you! And we would do it all again in a heartbeat!" Knuckles chirped, petting the hedgehog's quills. Shadow took his right hand and gave it a squeeze, "Thank you for telling us that, Sonic. I know it wasn't easy, but...why would you think you couldn't be your Little self around us anymore?"

"Ah, we-we'll-cause I'm not a baby anymore, I'm-" Sonic's ears lowered as a look of forlorn appeared in his eyes, "I'm all grown up now. I'm not little and cute anymore. I'm supposed to beat up bad guys and be cool and tough. Not a cry baby that needs his stuffy and bottle."

"Who says you're not cute!" Amy gasped in mock offense, tapping her finger on his black nose, making him go cross-eyed, "And you definitely are a hero. As many times as you've saved this village, you have every right to be called a hero." using her thumb, she wiped away a few stray tears as the beginnings of a smile formed on his muzzle. "You mean...it's ok if I use diapers, play, and act like a baby in front of you guys?" Sonic asked with a quiet voice.

"Of course!"

"Absolutely!"

"I have no problem with it!"

"I like you as a baby!" Everyone happily consented. "In case you've forgotten, we've been babying you anyway!" Amy laughs at Sonic's forgetfulness, "Oh, yeah. Heh, I was just complaining about that, wasn't I?" he blushes, shrinking into Knuckles and rubbing an arm. Amy smiled lovingly, "Together, we're a family, and you are our blue baby! Don't you remember what we told you?" she asked, taking his other hand. Emerald eyes filled again with happy tears; Sonic sniffed cheeks flushed brightly, the ends of his lips wobbling into a faint smile. Turning to look at Amy and Shadow on each side, "Y-yeah...that I'm your baby a-and that you'd guys wouldn't leave me alone?" Shadow and Amy grinned, squeezing Sonic's hands a moment in pride. "That's right! And don't you forget it!" he lowered his head, guiltily, "But...but I did forget."

Shadow's brows perked, "And what did I say would happen if you did forget?" Sonic's eyes widened, pulling himself closer to Knuckles trying to hide a smile. Shadow raised his free hand, flickering his fingers before reaching under the blue hedgehog's exposed belly. Sonic shrieked, breaking into a huge grin, taking his hands back to swipe Shadow's hands away, trying to get him to stop but not trying very hard, laughing and squirming.

"Ahahah! D-daddy! St-hahaha-stop!" pulling back, Shadow snorted, quitting his tickle attack, happy to see his little blueberry back and smiling again. Everyone else chuckled along; Sonic cuddling in Knuckles' heaving sides, feeling once again like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders; all was forgiven, his friends accepted him, and his stomach bubbled in happiness.

Knuckles smiled widely, bouncing the hedgehog in his arms, "Feeling better little blue?" Sonic quirked a smile back, ears all a tingle hearing that nickname, "Yeah." he sighed. His ears lowered back down, looking at Amy shyly; he felt the need to slip back into his little space. It had been far too long, in Sonic's opinion. But getting back there comfortably again around his friends would take some time, baby steps, and the first one was always the hardest. But he was safe here, they were ok with it, and there was no time like the present. Gulping, Sonic shrunk a bit, asking in his childish voice, "Um...mo-mommy?" watching her eyes light up, Sonic continued a little more confidently, "Can I has baba...and Speedy?"

"Of course!" she smiled, handing him his bottle; she left to go find the plushy for him. "Wait!" she halted, "Where is Speedy?"

"At my house." nodding, the pink hedgehog quickly left to grab the stuffed animal. After she left, Sonic looked to his brother, "Ahum, Tails..."

"Hmm?"

"Thanks for all of your help with this...and for putting up with me." he winked, smirking; the fox winked back, "Anything for you, bro."

Amy returned in record time not only with the toy but also his paci, but she held back from giving the items to their owner, "Here Knuckles, I can take him now." she extended her arms. "You sure?" Knuckles asked his charge for permission, not knowing why Amy wanted him. Sonic looked back at his large friend, shrugging but nodded in approval. Knuckles handed Sonic over to Amy, "Thanks. Come on, let's get you changed.~" she chimed; he blushed, forgetting about his soggy diaper. Cuddling Speedy, he drank his juice while Amy took him back to the nursery.

Turning the lights on, she laid him down on the changing table; Sonic giggles as she removed the diaper, holding his plushy tight, feeling the cold air hit him. Smiling warmly, she cleaned him up and pulled out a new diaper, "Mommy?"

"Yes, baby?" Tilting his head, emerald eyes bounced between the room and Amy asking curiously, "How come you didn't put away the stuff in my nursery?" Jade eyes saddened a little before brightening again, "Well, I was going to after you got back to normal and Shadow left. Since we wouldn't need all this stuff anymore...but...I-I just couldn't bring myself to do it. There were too many good memories here." he beamed at her, smelling the baby powder, eyes shining brightly, "You missed us?"

"Yeah, I did." Amy grinned, wrapping him up in the new diaper covered with bright sunflowers as she watched him yawn widely. "Someone's still a sleepy boy.~" she hummed; Sonic nodded, trying to keep his eyes open. She laughed softly, picking him up and placing him in the crib.

Narrowed eyes looked at her, confusion written all over his tired face. It was so cute, Amy was ecstatic to have her blue baby back. Tucking him in, she turned the mobile on and placed the paci in his mouth. Making sure the half-empty bottle was within reach and Speedy was in his arms, she caressed his cheek and kissed his nose and forehead. "Get some sleep, sweety. You've had a long day." smiling, he sucked the pacifier, "Nighty-night Mommy." he mumbled, "Nighty-night my little emerald." she whispered, turning off the light and closed the door.

Sonic breathed out through his nose, stifling another yawn. Heart glittering and swelling with love, he cuddled Speedy closing his eyes to dream of playtime, bottles, diapers, and all the other things that made his little self glow with joy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *A note from the author*
> 
> I just wanted to say thank you so much to anyone reading this story! I've been in the STH fandom for almost a year now, and it is my first time writing fanfiction.
> 
> When I started falling down the rabbit hole, that is, the amount of STH fanfics available out there, I found a few baby Sonic stories and fell in love with the ideas! For the first time, I also came across ABDL stories and realized after some research and intense self-examination that I am a Little myself. With the plethora of ideas and head cannons out there, I found myself brimming with story ideas for fanfiction, something that had never happened to me before—originally coming from a small fandom.
> 
> I'll admit when I started writing this story and decided I would post it, I was certain that a majority of the comments would be hate-filled, and the story would receive very few likes. But you guys have proved me to be very wrong. I've been floored at the amount of likes/ hearts/ kudos/ support and positive feedback you'll have sent me and couldn't be more tickled!
> 
> And I think you'll be happy to hear that I plan on posting more Sonic ABDL stories in the future! As of writing this letter, I'm working on my next story. "A Little Contract." The story will focus on Modern Sonic moving in with Eggman, and the Little shenanigans that ensue shortly after, along with some conflicting feelings, don't worry. No shipping will happen. That's not really my scene, especially where Little/ABDL things are concerned.
> 
> Someone asked me a while ago if I planned on doing any oneshots with this story. And after some consideration, I think I will! I don't know when I'll get to work on them, maybe while I'm writing "A Little Contract" if I need a break or if it'll happen sometime after that story is finished. Either way, I already have a few ideas. However, I haven't come up with very many, so if you have any ideas or suggestions, please send them to me! Though keep in mind the one-shots will be focused on Boom Sonic! and your ideas suggestions may or may not come to fruition as it all depends on how well I can flesh out the idea in my mind. Also, I will absolutely not writing anything kinky, erotic, lewd, or shippy!
> 
> Just...NO!
> 
> Here are a few prompts I have for the one-shot series so far;
> 
> Sonic visits Mom-bot for the weekend.
> 
> The team goes for a swim at the local watering hole.
> 
> Sonic is sick.
> 
> Eggman makes a baby ray, but it doesn't quite work.
> 
> Shadow wakes up to find Sonic upset from a nightmare.
> 
> Mark the Tapir returns and starts spying/stalking Sonic.
> 
> Sonic is depressed.
> 
> Anyway, that's all I've got so far. "A Little Contract" chapters will start to be posted on Valentine's week in celebration of when the Sonic movie came out and when I officially became a Sonic fan! 😆 Until then, feel free to check me out on Tumblr: ravecole or Deviantart, where I go by theeccentricnomad and post drawings to go with certain scenes in the stories. Don't expect too many in the next story as I can't draw Eggman yet. 😝
> 
> Shout outs go to the-pixlexic-sloth, my dear friend who has been so supportive of me dipping my toes into writing fan fiction and accepting my Little self.
> 
> Also, sargrasso8, blackpaw2020, babybubbled, guardiandragon98, terrabyte, shizu6616, saki, and everyone else who left comments. I can't help but giggle like an evil villain every time I see one! 😆😈


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